What is the effect of the summer solstice on humans and animals?

2024-06-20 2024-06-20T09:02:48Z

Arabia Weather - The summer solstice on planet Earth will begin on Thursday (June 20) in the Arab region. This day is characterized as the first day of summer and the longest day of the year, but how does this day affect our lives and the lives of living creatures around us?

What is the effect of the summer solstice on humans and animals?

Answer: The summer solstice affects the sleep and wake cycles of animals, and scientists have been interested in studying these effects and how wild animals adapt to this change in their daily cycles.

According to a study published in the Journal of Physiology in 1974, people may have difficulty determining their bedtime without a clock, because they are not good at telling time during periods of light or darkness; Light has a significant impact on the human body's circadian rhythm, or the sleep-wake cycle.

This is the day with the most sunlight in the Northern Hemisphere, and the extended daylight can make it difficult for people in northern latitudes to know when it's time to go to sleep if they don't look at the clock, but for some other animals, the midnight sun is not a problem.

What is the summer solstice?

Answer: The solstice is the phenomenon of the sun reaching the two maximum high and low points in its daily path during the seasonal movement before reversing its direction.

There are two annual solstice: the solstice on June 21, known as the “summer solstice,” and is considered the first day of summer and the longest day of the year, and the solstice on December 21, known as the “winter solstice,” and considered the first and shortest day of winter. day a year.

The summer solstice, or Midsummer Day, which marks the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, occurs when the Earth's tilt toward the sun is at its peak, and the sun is directly perpendicular to the Tropic of Cancer. At this time, the Earth's North Pole tilts toward the sun, which heralds the beginning of summer as the days get longer and the nights get shorter, and the sun's rays are perpendicular to the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere.

The seasonal equinox occurs when the center of the sun is directly above the equator, and this occurs twice a year. These cosmic phenomena are linked to the agricultural and harvest seasons, and therefore many holidays, festivals, and celebratory occasions coincide with the occurrence of these phenomena and the midpoints between them. The United Nations celebrates the International Solstice Day on June 21 of each year.

Sleep cycles and the summer solstice

Corey Williams, a biologist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, said in a report for Live Science that many animals in northern latitudes can naturally control sleep-wake cycles in extreme daylight conditions. He added:

“There are animals that stop sleeping for a long time, and give up their usual daily rhythm during this time of the year.”

For example, semi-wetted sandpipers (Calidris pusilla), which breed above the Arctic Circle, are not affected by long daylight periods as they alternate sleeping and waking hours with a nesting mate throughout the day.

Also, reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) ignore the absence of the light and dark cycle during the summer months and instead, their sleep cycles are subject to an ultra-fast rhythm, which means they sleep whenever they need to digest food. Williams said:

“She loses the long stretches of sleep she used to get, and replaces it with lots of daytime naps instead of one concentrated bout of sleep.”

Williams explained that this only happens in polar species, because their behavior is not affected by light and dark cycles and during this time of year, the advantage of animals being active at a certain time of the day is lost. For example, searching for food at night does not save energy, or provide protection from animals. predatory; Due to the constant daylight.

However, not all polar species abandon their circadian rhythm. For example, polar ground squirrels (Spermophilus parryii) adhere to their sleeping schedules throughout the year, retreating to their burrows during the darkest part of the day in summer (which is still as bright as twilight) to conserve energy. Scientists like Williams are working to discover what distinguishes polar animals that maintain ingrained sleep rhythms. As average global temperatures rise, animals are moving to higher latitudes, Williams said, “so it will be interesting to see how animals that have not been exposed to polar conditions respond during "Move it north."