Summer solstice 2022, which begins on Tuesday with the June solstice, feels more like summers before COVID-19, though
we'd be negligent if we didn't inform Virginians that the pandemic is still ongoing. Still, there's plenty to do this summer in and
around DC and northern Virginia, including relaxing on the beach on Virginia's shore, hiking at Great Falls Park or
in the Shenandoah Valley, watching wild ponies at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, taking in the colonial
atmosphere of Mount Vernon or Williamsburg, or visiting the National Zoo, monuments along the DC mall, or the District's many
museums. The sun travels along its northernmost course in the sky for the northern half of the globe during the June
solstice resulting in the year's longest day and shortest night. In the Northern Hemisphere, the June solstice marks the
official start of summer. It happens when Earth reaches the point in its orbit where the North Pole is at its maximum tilt
roughly 23.5 degrees toward the sun, according to the Farmer's Almanac. According to the magazine, the word
"solstice comes from the Latin word "solstitium," which is made up of the words "sol" (Sun) and "stitium" (still or stopped). Due to the