Sumer Solstice

[LesCimes]

Hope you all looked up at the sun today at 12:39 PM EDT to observe the sun's solstice position on the longest day of the year. It is "downhill" from now until December. Unfortunately, heating continues to escalate through July and much of August. Then the tilt of the earth's axis begins to usher in a cooling affect. To all you sun watchers ...

[Felix]

Yet, the earliest sunrise actually happened about a week ago. When I first set up my weather website a few years ago, I calculated and posted the sunrise and sunset times daily (plus the total hours of daylight) and I thought I had an error when the maximum didn't arrive on Summer Solstice.

To the contrary, here's an explanation:

http://earthsky.org/tonight/earliest-sunrises-before-june-solstice-jupiter-venus

"The earliest sunrises come before the summer solstice because the day is more than 24 hours long at this time of the year. In the Southern Hemisphere, the earliest sunsets of the year come before the winter solstice for the same reason."

"At mid-northern latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere, the earliest sunrises of the year happen around mid-June, despite the fact that the summer solstice ? the year?s longest day ? is still about a week away."

[elagache]

Dear LesCimes and WeatherCat "travelers through the seasons,"

Hope you all looked up at the sun today at 12:39 PM EDT to observe the sun's solstice position on the longest day of the year. It is "downhill" from now until December. Unfortunately, heating continues to escalate through July and much of August. Then the tilt of the earth's axis begins to usher in a cooling affect.

Yes, I did note it briefly, but as you say it is the official start of summer and more warm weather is headed our way.  In coastal California during autumn, there is commonly periods of off-shore flow caused by storms passing to the north.  Since the interior of California is close to desert, winds blowing into the coast from the interior can cause the hottest days of the year.  So our "hot season" can easily last into October.

So, I'm watching the monsoonal situation with concern.  There is another event of monsoonal moisture moving up the state for next weekend.  Alas, this one is expected to have very little moisture.  This could lead to dry lightning and the first round of wildfires for what is shaping up to be a really horrible summer for California and nearly states.

Oh well, . . . . Edouard

[LesCimes]

In coastal California during autumn, there is commonly periods of off-shore flow caused by storms passing to the north.  Since the interior of California is close to desert, winds blowing into the coast from the interior can cause the hottest days of the year.  So our "hot season" can easily last into October.

Regional and geographical influences upon weather are fascinating. Sometime just a few miles have a disproportionate affect upon climate, elevation (or lack of) not the least of these influences.