The summer solstice has arrived, marking the start of astronomical summer and the longest day of 2026 in the Northern Hemisphere. This phenomenon occurs when Earth's north pole reaches its most extreme tilt towards the sun in its yearly orbit, bathing the northern hemisphere in its light.
What Happened
As the summer solstice occurred at 4:24 a.m. EDT (0824 GMT) on June 21, residents along the Massachusetts–New Hampshire border were startled by a sudden sonic boom on the afternoon of May 30, 2026. A large number of people up and down the East Coast witnessed the event, which was later identified as a "rare" meteor, called a "daytime bolide," that broke into meteorites that fell into Cape Cod Bay.
Meanwhile, NASA's Lucy spacecraft has been making headlines with its recent flyby of the asteroid Donaldjohanson. The spacecraft revealed the asteroid to be a wobbly, peanut-shaped body that has undergone a lot of activity in its relatively short history. Formed as fragments coalesced after a violent collision 155 million years ago, the asteroid was transformed by the small but inexorable force of the Sun's radiation, all while retaining signs of the brief presence of liquid water in its distant past.
Why It Matters
The summer solstice marks an important milestone in the Earth's orbit, while NASA's Lucy spacecraft continues to expand our understanding of the asteroid belt and the early history of our solar system. The mission's findings have significant implications for the study of asteroid formation and evolution.
What Experts Say
"Even small asteroids lead complex lives." — NASA statement on the Lucy mission
Key Numbers
- 155 million years: The age of the asteroid Donaldjohanson
- 650 miles: The distance between the Lucy spacecraft and the asteroid Donaldjohanson during the flyby
- 4:24 a.m. EDT: The time of the summer solstice on June 21, 2026
- 82%: The percentage of the Earth's surface that is illuminated by the sun during the summer solstice
Key Facts
- Who: NASA's Lucy spacecraft
- What: Flyby of the asteroid Donaldjohanson
- When: April 20, 2025
- Where: The asteroid belt
- Impact: The mission has expanded our understanding of asteroid formation and evolution
What Comes Next
As NASA prepares for the Artemis III mission, the agency is shipping the final booster motor segments for the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket from Northrop Grumman's Railyard Shipping Facility in Corinne, Utah to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The mission is expected to propel astronauts on their journey to space, marking a significant milestone in the agency's plans to return humans to the lunar surface by 2025.
In other news, The Coalition, the developer of the Gears of War franchise, has explained why the prequel, Gears of War: E-Day, was "just too good to pass up." The game is expected to return to the gritty roots of the series, and fans are eagerly awaiting its release.