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