Northern lights were also expected across the northern U.S. and Canada, with the gallery confirming a display in Minnesota. The storms could intensify if a second CME hits today (April 16).

This solstice falls between June 20 and 22. Meanwhile, at the winter solstice, the Northern Hemisphere is leaning away from the sun — leading to the shortest day and longest night of the year.

In the winter, the sunrise is in the southeastern sky and the sunset is in the southwestern sky – a much shorter path across the Northern Hemisphere sky – so days are short and nights are long ...

The Earth is tilted approximately 23.5 degrees off a vertical axis, and because of this tilt, the most direct sunlight is aimed at the Southern Hemisphere during our astronomical winter and at the ...