Summer solstice 2027: the longest day of the year
The next summer solstice is Monday, June 21, 2027, at 10:11 AM Eastern (7:11 AM Pacific, 14:11 UTC). It's the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of astronomical summer. In 2026 it fell on June 21 at 4:24 AM Eastern.
Summer solstice dates and times
| Year | UTC | Eastern | Central | Pacific |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Jun 21, 08:24 UTC | Jun 21, 4:24 AM | Jun 21, 3:24 AM | Jun 21, 1:24 AM |
| 2027 | Jun 21, 14:11 UTC | Jun 21, 10:11 AM | Jun 21, 9:11 AM | Jun 21, 7:11 AM |
| 2028 | Jun 20, 20:02 UTC | Jun 20, 4:02 PM | Jun 20, 3:02 PM | Jun 20, 1:02 PM |
| 2029 | Jun 21, 01:48 UTC | Jun 20, 9:48 PM | Jun 20, 8:48 PM | Jun 20, 6:48 PM |
| 2030 | Jun 21, 07:31 UTC | Jun 21, 3:31 AM | Jun 21, 2:31 AM | Jun 21, 12:31 AM |
How much daylight on the longest day?
| City | Daylight on Jun 21 | On Dec 21 |
|---|---|---|
| Miami | 13h 44m | 10h 31m |
| Los Angeles | 14h 25m | 9h 52m |
| New York | 15h 05m | 9h 15m |
| Chicago | 15h 13m | 9h 07m |
| Seattle | 15h 59m | 8h 25m |
| London | 16h 38m | 7h 49m |
| Anchorage | 19h 22m | 5h 27m |
North of the Arctic Circle the Sun doesn't set at all around the June solstice: the midnight sun. At the North Pole it stays up for about six months.
Why June 20 or 21?
A calendar year is 365 days but the Earth's orbit takes about 365.24, so the solstice moment drifts about 6 hours later each year, then jumps back with every leap day. That's why it lands on June 20 in some years and June 21 in others, and why the date can differ between time zones.
Questions people ask
When is the summer solstice 2027?
Monday, June 21, 2027, at 10:11 AM Eastern (14:11 UTC). It's the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.
When is the first day of summer?
Astronomical summer starts at the June solstice, on June 20 or 21. Meteorological summer starts on June 1 and covers June, July and August.
When do the days start getting shorter?
Right after the June solstice. The change is tiny at first, a few seconds a day, and speeds up to two or three minutes a day by September in mid-northern latitudes.
Is the summer solstice the hottest day?
No. The hottest weeks usually come in July or August, because land and oceans keep warming for weeks after the Sun is highest. This lag is called seasonal lag.