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There's lots going on overhead during the solstice as the sun, moon and stars all align to influence life on the longest days of the year. Arnold Medalen's story on the solstice has some great history on this annual celestial phenomenon. Plus, in a somewhat infrequent occurrence, we'll actually have a full moon on the solstice (technically after midnight so the 22nd) which will make for a spectacular weekday Summer Sailstice sail. We've also added some other fun facts and celestial events that will treat us all for our sailing days and evenings ahead.
Many sailors on the East Coast will be celestial navigating between Marion and Bermuda as they race to Bermuda and West Coast sailors will be heading down the coast on the Coastal Cup from San Francisco to Santa Barbara.
 Enjoy the longest day of the year called the solstice or All-couples day or Alban Heflin as you'll read below:
THE STARGAZER
ARNOLD MEDALEN
We are in for a special view of Saturn, Venus and Mercury in late June. Find a good viewing location with a clear view of the western horizon and watch the trio every evening at dusk beginning about 18 June. They will grow a little closer every evening until Saturn begins to pull away at the end of the month. Venus and Mercury remain close through the first few days of July. The evenings of 8-9 July are certainly good viewing times when the Moon joins the party. Don't forget your binoculars. The longest day of the year occurs on 21 June with the Summer Solstice. It is know by several other names: Alban Heflin, Alben Heruin, All-couples day, Feast of Epona, Feast of St. John the Baptist, Feill-Sheathain, Gathering Day, Johannistag, Litha, Midsummer, Sonnwend, Thing-Tide, Vestalia, among others. "Solstice" comes to us from two Latin words: "sol" meaning sun, and "sistere," to cause to stand still. As the summer solstice approaches, the noonday sun rises higher and higher in the sky each day. On the day of the solstice, it rises an imperceptible amount, compared to the day before, so it seems to "stand still." Most societies in the Northern Hemisphere, ancient and modern, have celebrated a festival on or close to Midsummer:
In ancient Celtic countries, the Druids, the priestly, professional, diplomatic corps, celebrated Alban Heruin ("Light of the Shore"). This marked the midpoint between the spring Equinox (Alban Eiler; "Light of the Earth") and the fall Equinox (Alban Elfed; "Light of the Water"). Their midsummer festival celebrated the apex of Light, symbolized in the crowning of the Oak King, god of the waxing year. The crowning at this midpoint marked the start of the waning of the year and decreased daylight. In ancient China, the summer solstice ceremony celebrated the earth, the feminine, and the yin forces. It contrasted with the winter solstice that celebrated the heavens, masculinity and yang forces.
Ancient pagans in Germanic, Slav and Celtic tribes in Europe celebrated Midsummer with bonfires. Pairs of lovers would jump through the flames for good luck. It was believed that crops would grow as high as the couples were able to jump. The fires were also thought to give a boost to the sun's energy so that it would remain potent throughout the rest of the growing season and guarantee a plentiful harvest. After the conversion of Europe to Christianity, the feast day of St. John the Baptist was set as 24 June.
In ancient Rome, mid-summer was celebrated with the festival of Vestalia lasting from 7 to 15 June. The festival honored the Roman Goddess of the hearth, Vesta. Married women were able to enter the shrine of Vesta during the festival. At other times of the year, only the vestal virgins were permitted inside
Several Native American tribes marked the Summer Solstice. The Natchez tribe in the southern U.S. held a "first fruits" ceremony during the summer. The corn harvest was not permitted until after the feast.
Males in the Hopi tribe dressed up as Kachinas, spirits of rain and fertility who were messengers between mortals and the gods. At Midsummer, the Kachinas were believed to leave the villages to spend the next six months in the mountains, where they were believed to visit the dead underground and hold ceremonies on their behalf.
Native Americans have created stone structures linked to equinoxes and solstices. One is in a natural 20-acre amphitheater in Vermont. From a stone enclosure in the center of the bowl, several vertical rocks and other markers around the edge of the bowl are visible. At the summer solstice, the rising sun and setting sun align with notches in the rocks. The winter solstice and the equinoxes were similarly marked.
The Bighorn Medicine Wheel west of Sheridan, WY is a structure that contains a small cairn, a rounded or conical heap of stones, that is external to the main wheel. The cairn lines up with the center of the wheel and the sun rising at the summer equinox. Another similar sighting cairn provides a sighting for three dawn-rising stars: Aldebaran, Rigel and Sirius. A third cairn lines up with fourth star: Fomalhaut.
Star Calendar for June - July 2005
16 June - Spica is a little more than one finger-width to the lower left of the Moon, high in the southern sky as the sun sets this evening. The brilliant Jupiter is about one fist width to the right or upper right.
17 June - Spica is about one fist width to the right of the Moon at dusk. Arcturus is about 3 fist-widths above the Moon.
18 June - Look low in the west as the sky begins to darken. The planets Saturn, Venus and Mercury are gathering near the horizon. Magnitude -3.9 Venus will be the first to become visible, followed shortly by magnitude -0.6 Mercury to the lower right and magnitude 0.2 Saturn to the upper left.
19 June - Look for the Moon in the head of the Scorpion constellation this evening. The red star, Antares is a little more than 3 finger-widths to the lower left.
21 June - The Sun, appearing to travel along the ecliptic, reaches the point where it is farthest north of the celestial equator at 0146 EDT. This marks the Summer Solstice. The hours of daylight are longest and nights are shortest.
22 June - The Moon is full shortly after midnight EDT this morning. The full moon of June is known as the Rose Moon, Flower Moon, Hay Moon, Strawberry Moon, or Honey Moon. Tradition holds that this is the best time to harvest honey. In some traditions, newly wed couples were fed dishes and beverages that featured honey for the first month of their married life to encourage love and fertility. The surviving vestige of this tradition lives on in the name given to the holiday immediately after the ceremony: The Honeymoon.
23 June - The Moon is at perigee, 56.4 earth-radii distant. Since the perigee occurs near a full Moon, we can expect tidal extremes.
25 June - Venus, Saturn, and Mercury gather in a compact bunch low in the west at twilight. The trio appear closest tonight and tomorrow night.
26 June - For the early risers, the bright star 1 _ fist-widths below the Moon is magnitude 1.3 Fomalhaut.
27 June - Venus and Mercury pass within 0.07° as seen from our vantagepoint here on Earth. This is the closest planet-planet appulse (a near approach of two celestial bodies that does not result in an occultation) this year. Binoculars are a must.
28 June - Mars is a little more than 3 finger-widths to the left of the last quarter Moon in the pre-dawn sky.
2 July - The thin waning crescent moon is just to the right of the Pleiades cluster in the pre-dawn sky. Look low in the east just before dawn.
5 July - The Earth is at aphelion, it's farthest from the Sun for the year. The distance is about 1.0167 a.u., 152,100,00 km. That is about 5 million km, or 3.4%, more than the distance at perihelion on 4 January. (1 a.u. = average distance between Sun and Earth, about 93 million miles or 150 million km).
6 July - New Moon
8 July - The Moon is at apogee, 63.7 earth-radii distant. Mercury is at its greatest elongation, 26° east of the Sun. This evening is a perfect time to spot Mercury. Look low in the west at dusk. The very young waxing crescent Moon is just above the horizon. Magnitude -3.9 Venus is a little more than one finger width below the Moon. Magnitude 0.5 Mercury is less than one finger width to the lower left of Venus.
9 July - Magnitude 1.3 Regulus, in the constellation Leo, the lion is just to the left of the thin crescent Moon this evening. If you missed Venus and Mercury last night, this is a good opportunity. They are about one fist-width to the lower left.
10 July - Get your binoculars out tonight. The faint star a little more than one finger width below the Moon is magnitude 3.9 rho Leonis. Now scan above the Moon about 4 finger-widths to magnitude 3.4 Chertan. Lastly, look a little to the left for magnitude 4.0 iota Leonis, and magnitude 4.1 sigma Leonis. Both of these stars are also about 4 finger-widths from the Moon.
11 July - sigma Leonis is just to the right of the Moon this evening. The star about one fist width to the upper right of the Moon is magnitude 2.2 Denebola.
12 July - Jupiter is 3 finger-widths to the upper left of the Moon. With your binoculars, see if you can spot magnitude 2.9 Porrima, less than one finger width to the upper right of Jupiter, in the constellation Virgo.
13 July - The Moon shines between Jupiter to the right and Spica to the left.
14 July - The first quarter Moon is to the left of Spica this evening.
SUMMER SOLSTICE TRIVIA:
Each season starts at either an equinox or solstice. An Equinox is when day and night are of equal length. A Solstice is when the Earth is tipped the furthest toward or away from the sun.
For the Northern Hemisphere:
Spring (vernal) Equinox - 21 March
Summer Solstice - 21 June
Autumn Equinox - 23 Sept
Winter Solstice - 22 Dec
The summer solstice quiz:
www.familyeducation.com/quiz/0,1399,22-7128,00.html
Which movie takes place during the Summer Solstice?
Long Day's Journey into Night A Midsummer Night's Dream Suddenly Last Summer it's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Shakespeare was inspired by the merrymaking and tomfoolery that traditionally took place during the festival of Midsummer Night. What we call the first day of summer was actually right in the middle of it in the ancient calendar, where summer was the season that surrounded the longest day.
Which place on earth receives the longest period of daylight on June 21?
The North Pole. The South Pole. The equator. it's the North Pole. On June 21 (and for several weeks before and after), the North Pole is bathed in light. The sun doesn't set. The days at the equator are pretty constant year 'round. Twelve hours light, 12 hours dark.
What is the relationship between the moon's phase and the summer solstice?
There's always a full moon at the summer solstice. There's always a new moon at the solstice. There's no relationship. There is no relationship between the moon's phase and the solstices. The solstices are an effect of the earth's tilt and its rotation around the sun. The moon rotates around the earth according to its own schedule and is not affected by the sun.
Why do we have seasons?
Because the earth's orbit around the sun is elliptical. Because the earth's rotational axis is tilted. Because the earth's rotation changes direction.  The tilt of the earth's rotational axis (23.5 degrees) gives us the four seasons. Summer in the Northern Hemisphere is the time when the North Pole is tilted toward the sun, which gives it longer days than at any other time of the year.
How many hours of sunlight does Anchorage receive on the Summer Solstice?
19
This information sent in from John Marsh of the Tartan 40 'Asolare':
The Red Planet is about to be spectacular! This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.
The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification.
By August 27, Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.
Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.
By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month. Share this....NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN
By August 27, Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.
Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.
By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month. Share this....NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN
"Solstice" comes to us from two Latin words: "sol" meaning sun, and "sistere," to cause to stand still. As the summer solstice approaches, the noonday sun rises higher and higher in the sky each day. On the day of the solstice, it rises an imperceptible amount, compared to the day before, so it seems to "stand still." Most societies in the Northern Hemisphere, ancient and modern, have celebrated a festival on or close to Midsummer:
In ancient Celtic countries, the Druids, the priestly, professional, diplomatic corps, celebrated Alban Heruin ("Light of the Shore"). This marked the midpoint between the spring Equinox (Alban Eiler; "Light of the Earth") and the fall Equinox (Alban Elfed; "Light of the Water"). Their midsummer festival celebrated the apex of Light, symbolized in the crowning of the Oak King, god of the waxing year. The crowning at this midpoint marked the start of the waning of the year and decreased daylight. In ancient China, the summer solstice ceremony celebrated the earth, the feminine, and the yin forces. It contrasted with the winter solstice that celebrated the heavens, masculinity and yang forces.
Ancient pagans in Germanic, Slav and Celtic tribes in Europe celebrated Midsummer with bonfires. Pairs of lovers would jump through the flames for good luck. It was believed that crops would grow as high as the couples were able to jump. The fires were also thought to give a boost to the sun's energy so that it would remain potent throughout the rest of the growing season and guarantee a plentiful harvest. After the conversion of Europe to Christianity, the feast day of St. John the Baptist was set as 24 June.
In ancient Rome, mid-summer was celebrated with the festival of Vestalia lasting from 7 to 15 June. The festival honored the Roman Goddess of the hearth, Vesta. Married women were able to enter the shrine of Vesta during the festival. At other times of the year, only the vestal virgins were permitted inside
Several Native American tribes marked the Summer Solstice. The Natchez tribe in the southern U.S. held a "first fruits" ceremony during the summer. The corn harvest was not permitted until after the feast.
Males in the Hopi tribe dressed up as Kachinas, spirits of rain and fertility who were messengers between mortals and the gods. At Midsummer, the Kachinas were believed to leave the villages to spend the next six months in the mountains, where they were believed to visit the dead underground and hold ceremonies on their behalf.
Native Americans have created stone structures linked to equinoxes and solstices. One is in a natural 20-acre amphitheater in Vermont. From a stone enclosure in the center of the bowl, several vertical rocks and other markers around the edge of the bowl are visible. At the summer solstice, the rising sun and setting sun align with notches in the rocks. The winter solstice and the equinoxes were similarly marked.
The Bighorn Medicine Wheel west of Sheridan, WY is a structure that contains a small cairn, a rounded or conical heap of stones, that is external to the main wheel. The cairn lines up with the center of the wheel and the sun rising at the summer equinox. Another similar sighting cairn provides a sighting for three dawn-rising stars: Aldebaran, Rigel and Sirius. A third cairn lines up with fourth star: Fomalhaut.
Star Calendar for June - July 2005
16 June - Spica is a little more than one finger-width to the lower left of the Moon, high in the southern sky as the sun sets this evening. The brilliant Jupiter is about one fist width to the right or upper right.
17 June - Spica is about one fist width to the right of the Moon at dusk. Arcturus is about 3 fist-widths above the Moon.
18 June - Look low in the west as the sky begins to darken. The planets Saturn, Venus and Mercury are gathering near the horizon. Magnitude -3.9 Venus will be the first to become visible, followed shortly by magnitude -0.6 Mercury to the lower right and magnitude 0.2 Saturn to the upper left.
19 June - Look for the Moon in the head of the Scorpion constellation this evening. The red star, Antares is a little more than 3 finger-widths to the lower left.
21 June - The Sun, appearing to travel along the ecliptic, reaches the point where it is farthest north of the celestial equator at 0146 EDT. This marks the Summer Solstice. The hours of daylight are longest and nights are shortest.
22 June - The Moon is full shortly after midnight EDT this morning. The full moon of June is known as the Rose Moon, Flower Moon, Hay Moon, Strawberry Moon, or Honey Moon. Tradition holds that this is the best time to harvest honey. In some traditions, newly wed couples were fed dishes and beverages that featured honey for the first month of their married life to encourage love and fertility. The surviving vestige of this tradition lives on in the name given to the holiday immediately after the ceremony: The Honeymoon.
23 June - The Moon is at perigee, 56.4 earth-radii distant. Since the perigee occurs near a full Moon, we can expect tidal extremes.
25 June - Venus, Saturn, and Mercury gather in a compact bunch low in the west at twilight. The trio appear closest tonight and tomorrow night.
26 June - For the early risers, the bright star 1 _ fist-widths below the Moon is magnitude 1.3 Fomalhaut.
27 June - Venus and Mercury pass within 0.07° as seen from our vantagepoint here on Earth. This is the closest planet-planet appulse (a near approach of two celestial bodies that does not result in an occultation) this year. Binoculars are a must.
28 June - Mars is a little more than 3 finger-widths to the left of the last quarter Moon in the pre-dawn sky.
2 July - The thin waning crescent moon is just to the right of the Pleiades cluster in the pre-dawn sky. Look low in the east just before dawn.
5 July - The Earth is at aphelion, it's farthest from the Sun for the year. The distance is about 1.0167 a.u., 152,100,00 km. That is about 5 million km, or 3.4%, more than the distance at perihelion on 4 January. (1 a.u. = average distance between Sun and Earth, about 93 million miles or 150 million km).
6 July - New Moon
8 July - The Moon is at apogee, 63.7 earth-radii distant. Mercury is at its greatest elongation, 26° east of the Sun. This evening is a perfect time to spot Mercury. Look low in the west at dusk. The very young waxing crescent Moon is just above the horizon. Magnitude -3.9 Venus is a little more than one finger width below the Moon. Magnitude 0.5 Mercury is less than one finger width to the lower left of Venus.
9 July - Magnitude 1.3 Regulus, in the constellation Leo, the lion is just to the left of the thin crescent Moon this evening. If you missed Venus and Mercury last night, this is a good opportunity. They are about one fist-width to the lower left.
10 July - Get your binoculars out tonight. The faint star a little more than one finger width below the Moon is magnitude 3.9 rho Leonis. Now scan above the Moon about 4 finger-widths to magnitude 3.4 Chertan. Lastly, look a little to the left for magnitude 4.0 iota Leonis, and magnitude 4.1 sigma Leonis. Both of these stars are also about 4 finger-widths from the Moon.
11 July - sigma Leonis is just to the right of the Moon this evening. The star about one fist width to the upper right of the Moon is magnitude 2.2 Denebola.
12 July - Jupiter is 3 finger-widths to the upper left of the Moon. With your binoculars, see if you can spot magnitude 2.9 Porrima, less than one finger width to the upper right of Jupiter, in the constellation Virgo.
13 July - The Moon shines between Jupiter to the right and Spica to the left.
14 July - The first quarter Moon is to the left of Spica this evening.
SUMMER SOLSTICE TRIVIA:
Each season starts at either an equinox or solstice. An Equinox is when day and night are of equal length. A Solstice is when the Earth is tipped the furthest toward or away from the sun.
For the Northern Hemisphere:
Spring (vernal) Equinox - 21 March
Summer Solstice - 21 June
Autumn Equinox - 23 Sept
Winter Solstice - 22 Dec
The summer solstice quiz:
www.familyeducation.com/quiz/0,1399,22-7128,00.html
Which movie takes place during the Summer Solstice?
Long Day's Journey into Night A Midsummer Night's Dream Suddenly Last Summer it's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Shakespeare was inspired by the merrymaking and tomfoolery that traditionally took place during the festival of Midsummer Night. What we call the first day of summer was actually right in the middle of it in the ancient calendar, where summer was the season that surrounded the longest day.
Which place on earth receives the longest period of daylight on June 21?
The North Pole. The South Pole. The equator. it's the North Pole. On June 21 (and for several weeks before and after), the North Pole is bathed in light. The sun doesn't set. The days at the equator are pretty constant year 'round. Twelve hours light, 12 hours dark.
What is the relationship between the moon's phase and the summer solstice?
There's always a full moon at the summer solstice. There's always a new moon at the solstice. There's no relationship. There is no relationship between the moon's phase and the solstices. The solstices are an effect of the earth's tilt and its rotation around the sun. The moon rotates around the earth according to its own schedule and is not affected by the sun.
Why do we have seasons?
Because the earth's orbit around the sun is elliptical. Because the earth's rotational axis is tilted. Because the earth's rotation changes direction. The tilt of the earth's rotational axis (23.5 degrees) gives us the four seasons. Summer in the Northern Hemisphere is the time when the North Pole is tilted toward the sun, which gives it longer days than at any other time of the year.
How many hours of sunlight does Anchorage receive on the Summer Solstice?
19
This information sent in from John Marsh of the Tartan 40 'Asolare':
The Red Planet is about to be spectacular! This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.
The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification.
By August 27, Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.
Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.
By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month. Share this....NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN
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