Summer Solstice Marks Official Start of Season Hot, news

Earth is tilted on its axis 23.5 degrees, so it leans one way as it spins around its axis while orbiting the sun. On June 21 this year (some years it's June 20), the North Pole is pointing toward the sun as much as is possible. (Winter solstice occurs when the top half of our planet, everything north of the equator, faces directly away from the sun, leaving the North Pole in complete darkness.)