#The Summer Solstice

[stars-on-the-water]

I just realized Litha is tomorrow. Welllllllll- guess who’s gonna go see Rite Here Rite Now and then light a bonfire lol.

[justmochi]

mira is the summer solstice princess

[lotussgrl]

cemetery of laeken, brussels.

the story of a marble worker evrard flignot who devastated by the death of his wife built a mausoleum for her. at first look inside, there is a mourner reaching out to an empty wall. but, once a year, on the day of the summer solstice, the sun draws a light that recalls this love for almost a century.

[lionofchaeronea]

Wishing you a happy solstice (winter or summer, as the case may be). Unless you're a flat earther, in which case, Happy Inexplicable Phenomenon!

[whimsigothwitch]

Witchy summer

[nasa]

The Summer Solstice Is Here!

Today — June 20, 2024 — is the northern summer solstice. In the Northern Hemisphere, it marks the longest day of the year and the official start to summer.

We experience changing day lengths throughout the year because Earth rotates on a tilted axis as it goes around the Sun. This means during half of the year the North Pole tilts toward the Sun and in the other half it points away.

Solstices occur twice per year, when Earth’s poles are tilted closest to and farthest from the Sun.

The summer solstice is an important day for cultures around the world, especially at latitudes near the North Pole. Indigenous peoples have long marked the summer solstice with dancing and celebrations. Farmers have relied on the solstice to determine when to plant crops. The solstice’s timing also influenced the development of some calendars, like the ancient Roman calendar and the modern Gregorian calendar.

To mark the beginning of summer, here are four ways you can enjoy the Sun and the many wonders of space this season:

1. Check out the “Strawberry Moon”

June is the month of the Strawberry Moon. This name originates with the Algonquin tribes. June is when strawberries are ready for harvest in the northeastern United States, where the Algonquin people traditionally live. The full Strawberry Moon this year happens tomorrow night — June 21, 2024. Grab a pair of binoculars to see it in detail.

2. Celebrate the Heliophysics Big Year!

During the Heliophysics Big Year, we are challenging you to participate in as many Sun-related activities as you can. This month’s theme is performance art. We’re looking at how various kinds of performance artists are moved by the Sun and its influence on Earth. For example, check out this Sun song!

Find out how to get involved here: https://science.nasa.gov/sun/helio-big-year/.

3. Listen to a space-cast

NASA has a ton of great space podcasts. Take a listen to Curious Universe’s Here Comes the Sun series to learn all about our closest star, from how it causes weather in space, to how you can help study it! For even more podcasts, visit our full list here: https://www.nasa.gov/podcasts.

4. Make sunspot cookies

The Sun sometimes has dark patches called sunspots. You can make your own sunspots with our favorite cookie recipe. Real sunspots aren’t made of chocolate, but on these sunspot cookies they are. And they're delicious.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

[xtruss]

The Italian resort town of Sperlonga can be seen from a cave that was once part of Roman emperor Tiberius’s villa. The first-century A.D. ruler hosted solstice viewings at the site. Photograph By Horst Kløver, Lauf/Redux

See The Summer Solstice From A Roman Emperor’s Party Cave

Ancient Roman Elites Marveled at an Astronomical Alignment from this Cavern on Italy’s Coast. Now You Can Too.

— By Susan Van Allen | June 20, 2023

When summer arrives, celebrations of the solstice happen all over the world. In Italy, la dolce vita unfolds in Sperlonga, between Rome and Naples, in the middle of a coastal stretch called the Riviera of Ulysses.

Sperlonga is set on a promontory, with a curve of beach clubs below, adorned with perfect rows of colorful umbrellas. Bordering the beach is an alluring sight: a giant cave opening to the sea. Recent discoveries reveal Sperlonga’s cave to be the location of an extraordinary astronomical phenomenon dating to ancient Roman times.

Roman Holidays

The cave at Sperlonga was the place to be in summers of the first century A.D., if you were lucky enough to be invited by Emperor Tiberius. It was part of his massive villa, remodeled to be an awe-inspiring, open-air banquet room. Romans would boat there, escaping the heat of the Eternal City, and dine while reclining on benches in the cave’s dining niche (the triclinium), which was decorated with mosaics and shells.

Map

It was an atmosphere that mixed myth with reality. As this coast was thought to be the location of events in Homer’s Odyssey, diners were surrounded with enormous marble sculptures that recounted the trials of Ulysses (Greek name, Odysseus)—dramatic images of the hero thrusting a spear to blind the giant cyclops Polyphemus or of his ship being attacked by monstrous Scylla. The natural backdrop was the same that enchants travelers today: sparkling sea and Mount Cicero, where Ulysses was captured by the sorceress Circe.

A copy of a Roman Statue depicting Ulysses blinding a Cyclops is among the displays at Sperlonga’s Archaeology Museum. The original was made for the cave villa of Roman Emperor TIberius. Photograph By Emanuela de Santis, Anzenberger

During the summer solstice, guests to Tiberius’s cave experienced a wondrous event: The dining niche was designed by his architect and astronomer to be directly lit by the rays of the setting sun. The discovery of the marvelous alignment was made only recently by archaeologist Marina De Franceschini with archaeoastronomer Giuseppe Veneziano of the Astronomical Observatory of Genoa.

While sites like Stonehenge, the pyramids of Egypt, and Teotihuacan in Mexico have long been known for their astronomical alignment, De Franceschini says discoveries show that buildings in Imperial Rome were also designed to correspond with the sun’s path.

“The power of the sun was seen as a sign of a divine presence, and when Emperor Tiberius stood in his cave’s niche on the solstice, he was glowing, proving his divine origin, that he was an intermediary between men and gods,” she says.

In this mid-20th-century photo, workers excavate the cave in Sperlonga, Italy, which was once part of a Roman emperor’s villa. Photograph By David Lees, Getty Images

This discovery also reveals another dimension of Tiberius, whom historians nickname “the reluctant emperor.” His succession was fraught with intrigue, as all believed his mother, Livia, killed off potential heirs to the throne to put him in power. Gloomy and unpopular with the Senate, he retreated from Rome to rule from Sperlonga. Although he may have been unhappy about his role as emperor, De Franceschini’s cave discovery shows he strove to emulate rulers who came before him.

Tiberius’s party times in Sperlonga ended abruptly when the cave collapsed during one of his banquets, nearly killing him. Spooked, he abandoned the place for Villa Jovis in nearby Capri.

Seeing the Solstice at Sperlonga

De Franceschini brought her cave findings to the new director of the National Museum of Sperlonga, Cristiana Ruggini, who collaborated with her to stage a 2022 Summer Solstice Event. It will be repeated this June 24.

On that evening, visitors can enter the museum and then the nearby cave after-hours to experience the luminous effects in the niche. Slide projections will recreate what a banquet scene may have looked like on those long-ago summer nights. The presentation also shows how the Ulysses statues, now in the museum, were strategically placed in the cave. De Franceschini believes that “The Blinding of Polyphemus” statue was made for the summer dining niche, where the sun’s bright rays would also create a blinding effect to the viewer.

The solstice event is one of many initiatives Ruggini has spearheaded, reviving the museum and archaeological site, which is celebrating 60 years since its founding. Along with expanding the site’s archaeological research, Ruggini envisions the museum as a cultural center.

Situated halfway between Naples and Rome on Italy’s Adriatic shores, Sperlonga has been a resort town since ancient times. Photograph By Mauro Flamini, Reda & Co/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

Though Sperlonga has long been a popular vacation destination for Romans and Neapolitans, it’s still under the radar for foreigners. It can be reached from Rome by car or train to the Fondi-Sperlonga station, and then a taxi or bus, in about two hours.

Travelers can wander the pedestrian-only historic center, a labyrinth of whitewashed stone buildings, archways, and narrow stairways. Sperlonga’s beach clubs serve seafood dishes, such as spaghetti alle vongole (with clams), or Caprese salads, made with fresh mozzarella from farms near Naples. After lunch, a walk along the beach leads to the museum and archaeological site with Tiberius’s cave, where the heart of Sperlonga’s enchantments await.

[nevver]

The Banquet, René Magritte

[renaissanceousia]

i think poseidon surrendering the war for percy explains why percy choose the gods' side in the future. because percy actually saw that his father is willing to give up glory for him, and he knows that glory is a big deal for the greeks. that's why despite understanding that luke's argument makes sense to some extent, he's still on the gods' side. his father's side.

[artofmaquenda]

☀️Happy Summer Solstice☀️

(on this side!)

[iambrillyant]

“your new era begins when you choose yourself unapologetically and release the weight of who you were yesterday, it begins when you decide that you’re deserving of a life better than the one you’re leaving behind, it begins when you start to believe in your own worthiness.”

— billy chapata

[mannyblacque]

via Cristian Estrada | Halloween Variant

[fluffyslug]

I drew this a couple months ago (for the solstice, ahah) but I didn't have tumblr then. Hope my fellow cartoon devourers like it!

[rherlotshadow]

The Longstones in a field of wild flowers - midsummer.

Avebury, Wiltshire

[vox-anglosphere]

Sunrise at 4:51 am illuminates the ancient megaliths of Stonehenge

[whimsigothwitch]

Blessed Litha witches