Celebrate Summer Solstice In Ocean City With These Events

OCEAN CITY, NJ — As if summer events in Ocean City aren’t already in full swing, here’s another reason to celebrate the season: The June solstice, regarded as the official start to summer, arrives Wednesday.

Some ways to celebrate the summer solstice in our area include:

• June 20: Keb' Mo' at Ocean City Music Pier
• June 21: Farmer's Market at Tabernacle Grounds
• June 23, 24: Two-Day Book Sale at Ocean City Library
• June 24: Antique Auto Show at Tabernacle Grounds

The sun travels its longest path through the sky on the day of the summer solstice, which occurs the exact moment Sol reaches its highest and northernmost points in the sky, making it the longest day of the year in terms of daylight. In Ocean City, that’s at 1 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

On Wednesday, the sun will rise at 5:32 a.m. in Ocean City and will set at 8:28 p.m., meaning we’ll see about 15 hours of daylight.

You can read more about the science of the summer solstice on The Old Farmer’s Almanac website.

The summer solstice offers a short window to see electric blue noctilucent clouds, the highest in Earth's atmosphere, which float about 50 miles above our planet's surface near the edge of space, which starts at an altitude of 62 miles.

As you’re filling out your summer calendar, block out a few dates for the summer meteor showers. The Delta Aquariids, Alpha Capricornids and Perseids all start in July.

• Read More: 2023 Guide To Meteor Showers And Other Celestial Events

Also, the July 3 full buck moon is the first of four consecutive supermoons. They’re not that much different from other full moons, but they do appear to be bigger and brighter.

And, who knows, you may get a chance to see the aurora borealis as the sun’s 11-year magnetic cycle goes into overdrive as it approaches what’s known as “solar maximum.” When this happens, the sun’s magnetic fields flip, creating a greater number of sunspots that can set off the ethereal northern lights displays.

• Read More: Aurora Borealis Displays More Likely In Active Solar Storm Season | Aurora Borealis Hunting: What’s A Kp Index, More Northern Lights Tips