--- description: Summer solstice is the annual event where the sun is at its highest point in the sky. For more information, watch the video above. title: Summer Solstice: The Start of Summer image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8406d2c591dcc651/698698ae13c79f3a63192c22/ap319703517254.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Environment](/tag/environment/) ## Environment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Summer Solstice: The Start of Summer by [TIME Video](/author/time-video/) ## TIME Video Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 20, 2014 11:36 AM CUT  Greatest must-do travel experiences. File photo dated 21/06/10 of dawn breaking at the World Heritage site at Stonehenge in Wiltshire as revellers gathered to watch the sunrise during the summer solstice, which ranked at number18 in a list of the greatest must-do travel experiences, the highest ranked experience in the UK. Issue date: Thursday May 15, 2014\. More than 2,000 adults took part in a poll for the Discovery Channel which ranked a trip to the North Cape in Norway to see the Aurora Borealis spectacular display as the ultimate travel high. A panel including TV adventurer Bear Grylls drew up a "wonder list" ahead of the public vote, which placed undersea exploration at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia in second spot. See PA story SHOWBIZ Travel. Photo credit should read: Chris Ison/PA Wire URN:19825110 Greatest must-do travel experiences. File photo dated 21/06/10 of dawn breaking at the World Heritage site at Stonehenge in Wiltshire as revellers gathered to watch the sunrise during the summer solstice, which ranked at number18 in a list of the greatest must-do travel experiences, the highest ranked experience in the UK. Issue date: Thursday May 15, 2014\. More than 2,000 adults took part in a poll for the Discovery Channel which ranked a trip to the North Cape in Norway to see the Aurora Borealis spectacular display as the ultimate travel high. A panel including TV adventurer Bear Grylls drew up a "wonder list" ahead of the public vote, which placed undersea exploration at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia in second spot. See PA story SHOWBIZ Travel. Photo credit should read: Chris Ison/PA Wire URN:19825110Chris Ison—PA Wire/AP by [TIME Video](/author/time-video/) ## TIME Video Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 20, 2014 11:36 AM CUT Summer solstice is the annual time when the sun is at its highest point in the sky and the daylight seems never-ending in the Northern Hemisphere. But it’s also a time for celebration for many cultures across the world. The word solstice comes from the latin word solstitium or sol (the sun) plus the word stit or -stes (standing), which basically means the sun is standing still. This feels like an accurate description, as during the summer solstice, we get 16 hours of day light. For more insight into this annual event, check out the video above. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2907240/summer-solstice-explainer/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2907240/summer-solstice-explainer/"},"headline":"Summer Solstice: The Start of Summer","datePublished":"2014-06-20T11:36:52.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T08:32:58.284Z","description":"If you burn easily, then this might not be your favorite day of the year.","url":"https://time.com/2907240/summer-solstice-explainer/","keywords":["Environment"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8406d2c591dcc651/698698ae13c79f3a63192c22/ap319703517254.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Video","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-video/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8406d2c591dcc651/698698ae13c79f3a63192c22/ap319703517254.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Greatest must-do travel experiences","caption":"Greatest must-do travel experiences","creditText":"Chris Ison—PA Wire/AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/environment/","name":"Environment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2907240/summer-solstice-explainer/","name":"Summer Solstice: The Start of Summer"}}]}] ```