The day many of us longed for during those short, dark, cold winter days is upon us.

Tuesday, June 21, is the longest day of the year, celebrated as the summer solstice.

Technically the solstice arrived at 5:14 a.m.

ET in the US.

Here are some basic solstice facts.

What is the summer solstice?

(By longest “day,” we mean the longest period of sunlight hours.)

The solstice isn’t always on the same date.

How much sun will we see?

The amount of sun you’ll get depends on where you live.

The further north you are, the more sun.

Minneapolis and Seattle, you get 15 hours, 59 minutes of sun.

Boston, 15 hours, 17 minutes.

San Francisco, 14 hours, 47 minutes.

Los Angeles, 14 hours, 26 minutes.

Dallas, you get 14 hours, 19 minutes.

Miami, 13 hours 45 minutes.

And let’s talk about the Land of the Midnight Sun.

Anchorage, Alaska, gets 19 hours, 21 minutes.

But Fairbanks gets a whopping 21 hours, 49 minutes.

It’s worth going to theirFarmer’s Almanac pagejust to marvel at that.

Traditional festivities there include folk dancing, wreath making, and maypole raising.