Summer Arrives Today
June 20, 2012 4:30 AM 
It’s officially called the summer solstice but most us just say the first day of summer. The exact arrival of summer is 7:09 PM (EDT) and it marks the farthest point north of the equator that the sun will reach before starting it slow journey southward. It is also the longest day of the year. (I used to joke that the longest day of the year was when my in-laws came over for dinner). Here are some interesting summer facts.
–Although the days will be getting shorter the temperatures will increase. That’s because the atmosphere is still warming up from cool spring temperatures and the full effect of the sun’s heat won’t be felt until July or August.
–July is the National Ice Cream Month because it is the month the most ice cream is sold.
–All young people experience learning losses when they do not engage in educational activities during the summer. Research spanning 100 years shows that students typically score lower on standardized tests at the end of summer vacation than they do on the same tests at the beginning of the summer
–In 1816, due to the large volcanic eruption of Mount Tambora, there was a historic decrease in solar activity which resulted in extremely low temperatures during summer months particularly in the United States, Canada, and Northern Europe.
There are only 13 summer weekends so if you haven’t started planning for them yet, get busy!
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