 UMass Amherst Sunwheel and Sky Watching Events Mark the Summer Solstice on June 21 and 22
June 8, 2009
AMHERST, Mass. – The public is invited to witness sunrise and sunset associated with the Summer Solstice among the standing stones of the UMass Amherst Sunwheel on Sunday, June 21 and Monday, June 22, at 5 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. both days. This year’s Sunwheel events not only mark the longest day and shortest night of the year, but they celebrate the International Year of Astronomy in 2009.
At the gatherings, which have attracted more than 10,000 visitors over the past 11 years, UMass Amherst astronomer Judith Young will give one-hour presentations that include information on the seasonal positions of Earth, Sun and Moon, significance of the solstices and equinoxes, phases of the Moon, building the Sunwheel, and discussion of other calendar sites such as Stonehenge in England and Chichen Itza in Mexico. Young will also explain the Moon’s 18.6-year cycle known as the Major Lunar Standstill and answer questions about astronomical signs of the seasons.
The instant of the Summer Solstice this month is 1:46 a.m. on June 21, Young says. During the summer season it ushers in, the Northern Hemisphere on Earth is tilted toward the sun and receives more direct rays of the sun than the Southern Hemisphere. On June 21, there are 24 hours of daylight north of the Arctic Circle (66.5? north of the equator) and 24 hours of darkness south of the Antarctic Circle (66.5? south of the equator). On June 21, the sun’s rays are directly overhead at local noon along the Tropic of Cancer, the latitude line that passes through Mexico, Saharan Africa, and India on June 21.
Teachers can earn certificates of participation for attending seasonal gatherings at the Sunwheel, details at: www.astro.umass.edu/~young/pdp.html
The UMass Amherst Sunwheel is located south of McGuirk Alumni Stadium, just off Rocky Hill Road (Amity St.) about ? mile south of University Drive in Amherst. Visitors to the Sunwheel should be prepared for cool temperatures and wet footing. Rain cancels the events. A $3 donation is requested to help with the cost of the additional site work and future events.
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