The meaning of Solstice

Well, that's it for another year, it's come and gone - the high point of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, from now on until 20 December, the days will get shorter and shorter. At least they're still long - today will be 16 hours 45 minutes long, the sun will set (in Warsaw) at 21:00. But there's a sense that although the summer's only just arrived, the year is already in decline.

Note on Tim Osborn's map (above) the sinusoidal shape of daylight across the globe. North of the Arctic Circle, there's 24 hours of sunlight; the Antarctic is currently experiencing endless night, with a twilight fringe brushing the continent's northern coast. Note also the position of the sun, scooting around the Tropic of Cancer. Soon it will start dropping towards the Equator again, which it will cross during the Autumn Equinox (22 September), en route to the Tropic of Capricorn, which it will reach by the Winter Solstice (21 December).

Below: Compare the shape of daylight today with how it looked at the moment of the Spring Equinox just three months ago. They sinusoid gives way to two neat rectangles; 12 hours of day, 12 hours of night across the whole world, wherever you are; the sun over the Equator.

Just one of those many things that makes me ponder about how extremely fortunate mankind has been in finding itself on Planet Earth. It is a tilted planet, whose axis is 23 degrees off vertical in relation to our local star gives us seasons.

One final thing: School's out for summer. Ten weeks before Moni and Eddie go back to the classroom. Moni starts high school (liceum), Eddie middle school (gimnazjum).

This time last year:
The Crumfel's first gig (though Moni had not yet thought up the band's name)