The Fascinating Astrology Behind The Summer Solstice (Plus, A Few Rituals To Celebrate It)

Every year between June 20 and June 21, the Earth tilts its closest to the Sun, marking the first day of summer and the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. This year's summer solstice falls at 6:07 a.m. EDT on June 21. Here are a few ways that astrology and the solstice overlap and some history about the rituals of the summer solstice:

The world solstice derives from sol (sun) + sistere (standing still). For about three days, el Sol appears to stop in its tracks. In truth, its relative position to the Earth doesn’t change much, hence this illusion. From our vantage point in the Northern Hemisphere, the Sun is finishing its northbound journey and moving southward, treating us to the lushness of summer.

The summer solstice marks the start of Cancer season in astrology. At the solstice, the Sun appears to pass directly over the Tropic of Cancer. This is the moment when astrologers say that the Sun has "entered" Cancer, meaning that it’s now traveling through the part of the zodiac band represented by Cancer. Each "season" lasts for about 30 days, but the solstice always coincides with the sign of the Crab.

Since the tropical zodiac is fixed, it’s not affected by shifts in the Earth’s axis. It begins every year with the Sun entering the Aries portion of the zodiac band, which is based on the position of the Sun at the spring equinox on March 21. The summer solstice coincides with the Sun’s alignment to the Tropic of Cancer on June 21, and the winter solstice happens when the Sun hits the Tropic of Capricorn on or around December 21.

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One common misconception is that the summer solstice begins when the Sun is close to the Earth, heating up the temperatures. (Nah, that’s just climate change, dammit.) At the summer solstice, the Sun is actually at its farthest point from the Earth. The tilt of the Earth on its axis is what determines the amount of light and heat we get from that great ball o' fire. At the summer solstice, the Northern Hemisphere is at its most direct tilt into those golden, blazing rays. So the life-giving Sun is directly overhead, giving us light into the wee hours.

You can’t open an internet browser without seeing the throngs of festival-styled solstice revelers gathering at the ancient Stonehenge site. But this stuff goes way back! In ancient Egypt, summer solstice coincided with the first phase of the Nile’s flooding, marking the Egyptian New Year. In ancient China, they celebrated the switch from yang to yin energy for the next half-year. The Romans honored the goddess Vesta (which is one of astrology’s asteroids) with their Vestalia solstice soiree. And the Greeks honored Cronus, or Saturn, the god of agriculture, at their solstice Kronia festival, where slaves and free people feasted as equals for a day.

Check out a few other astrological events this week has in store here.