#2783 "Summer Solstice Jim Day Rapids"

#2783 "Summer Solstice Jim Day Rapids"
10x8 inches oils on canvas

Bob Hedden formed Plein Air Painters Thousand Islands Region (PAPTIR) in 2009. They arrange Plein Air Painting Events in Northern New York and Southern Ontario. This particular Wednesday they came to Singleton Lake to paint with me as they have several times in the past. Most of us stood overlooking Jim Day Rapids. 

It was the first day of Summer 2023. Summer began with the solstice at 10:58 A.M. EDT on Wednesday, June 21, 2023 marking the astronomical first day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. Solstice marks the official beginning of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, occurring when Earth arrives at the point in its orbit where the North Pole is at its maximum tilt (about 23.5 degrees) toward the Sun, resulting in the longest day and shortest night of the calendar year. The solstice shifts between June 20, 21, and 22. 

The word "solstice" comes from the Latin solstitium—from sol (Sun) and stitium (still or stopped). Due to Earth's tilted axis, the Sun doesn't rise and set at the same locations on the horizon each morning and evening; its rise and set positions move northward or southward in the sky as Earth travels around the Sun through the year. Also, the Sun's track in the sky becomes higher or lower throughout the year. The June solstice is significant because the Sun reaches its northernmost point in the sky at this time, at which point the Sun's path does not change for a brief period of time. 

The timing of the June solstice is not based on a specific calendar date or time; it all depends on when the Sun reaches its northernmost point from the celestial equator. Therefore, the solstice won't always occur on the same day. Currently, it shifts between June 20, 21, and 22. 

Technically, it depends on whether we're speaking about the meteorological or astronomical start of the season. Most meteorologists divide the year into four seasons based on the months and the temperature cycle, which allows them to compare and organize climate data more easily. In this system, summer begins on June 1 and ends on August 31. Therefore, the summer solstice is not considered to be the first day of summer, meteorologically speaking. 

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Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick