The summer solstice for the Northern Hemisphere is the exact moment when the axial tilt of the Earth is at its most inclined toward the sun during its 365 day orbit -- at an angle of 23° 26'. That doesn't happen at midday, it doesn't happen at midnight, it happens at the exact same time for every country on the planet. It isn't like a New Year celebration when the clock strikes midnight across the timezones in turn -- this is a global time event, the solstice happens at the same moment.
in the Northern Hemisphere, summer solstice began on Jun 21 2011 at 1:16 P.M. EDT
in the UK June 21, 2011 at 17:16 UTC
Summer Solstice Fun Facts
from Chiff.com
Pagans called the Midsummer moon the "Honey Moon" for the mead made from fermented honey that was part of wedding ceremonies performed at the Summer Solstice.
Ancient Pagans celebrated Midsummer with bonfires, when couples would leap through the flames, believing their crops would grow as high as the couples were able to jump.
Midsummer was thought to be a time of magic, when evil spirits were said to appear. To thwart them, Pagans often wore protective garlands of herbs and flowers. One of the most powerful of them was a plant called 'chase-devil', which is known today as St. John's Wort and still used by modern herbalists as a mood stabilizer.
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