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"Yesterday, June 20th, kicked off the season as the summer solstice. Known as the longest day of the year for the Northern Hemisphere, to some on the East Coast and in the Midwest, it seemed to be the hottest day of the year thus far. There were heat warnings in 13 states, temperatures well over 90 degrees, and city heat indexes higher than 100. On the other hand, across the country along the Pacific Coast, temperatures could remain in the 60s and 70s until July 4th. Despite the climate, the solstice was still celebrated north of the equator (a day early, I might add). Usually, the solstice happens on June 21st, but since 2012 was a leap year, the sun was higher yesterday instead of today. The reason we get the most hours of daylight in the year on the solstice? The Earth points the North Pole directly toward the sun on this day. For the duration of 2012, Earth&amp;#039;s tilt will descend, leading to the winter solstice (the lowest amount of sunlight of the year) which will occur on December 21st. The solstice also marks the beginning of summer, which for many includes vacations near the beach, backyard parties, family fun and if you&amp;#039;re lucky, those coveted summer Fridays off from work. Tell us what you&amp;#039;ll be doing this season and share your tips for enjoying the hot (or soon-to-be warm) weather! "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/life/news/a47195/early-summer-solstice/?src=syn&dom=yah_buzz&mag=wdy&ha=1&kw=ist>