June 22 (today) is the year’s longest day in countries located in the northern hemisphere, including Pakistan.
Talking to a private news channel, Metrological Department Director Muhammad Hanif said the longest day of the year was called the “summer solstice”.
“Solstice is defined as either of the two time of the year at which the sun is furthest north or south of the equator. The winter solstice falls on December 21 in these countries,” he added.
However, he said the longest day on June 22 marked the peak of summer when the sun comes closest to the northern hemisphere, adding that the countries located on the Southern hemisphere will experience the longest day on December 22.
The director said the day-night equation would remain the same for a couple of days in Pakistan and the sun would shine around 14:30 hours but the process of a gradual shift in time like late sunrises and early sunsets would begin in the last week of June.
The met spokesman said on March 21 and September 22, the day and the night were of equal length, adding that the process was known as equinox.
The word solstice is derived from the Latin words meaning “the sun” and “to stop”.