Twilight News Edition 272
Edition 272, 24 June 2022
WHAT IN THE WORLD IS ‘SUMMER SOLSTICE’?
By Saachi Mehra
Between the 20th-22nd of July, it is the ‘Summer Solstice’ or ‘June Solstice’. This is to welcome the summer in the Northern Hemisphere, and to welcome the winter in the Southern Hemisphere. It is the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere.
But no, that doesn’t mean it exceeds 24 hours! The longest day means the day with the most daylight.
When the earth’s axis is tilted 23.44 degrees toward the sun, the summer solstice is said to have occurred. In India, the exact time for the summer solstice was 2:43 PM.
It is the June solstice when the North Pole is titled closer to the sun, and the South Pole is farther away from the sun. Thus, the places north of the equator have daylight for more than 12 hours, whilst the places south of the equator have daylight for less than 12 hours.
Like the summer solstice, there is also a winter solstice, which is the exact opposite. It takes place between the 20th-22nd of December. The winter solstice marks the longest night - the least daylight and the most nightfall in 24 hours.
So, which solstice is your favourite? Summer solstice or winter solstice?
AMERICANS ALLOWED TO CARRY HANDGUNS FOR SELF-DEFENCE
By Fiona Jhaveri
The United States Senate has approved a bipartisan bill of modest gun safety measures as the country’s Supreme Court broadly expanded gun rights by ruling that Americans have a constitutional right to carry handguns in public for self-defence.
The Senate bill, approved in a 65-33 vote, is the first significant gun control legislation to pass in three decades, in a country with the highest gun ownership per capita in the world and the highest number of mass shootings annually among wealthy nations.
Senate bill is the first significant gun control legislation to pass in three decades and comes in the wake of mass shootings that killed more than 30 people in Texas and New York.
The bill, which supporters say will save lives, is modest. Its most important restraint of gun ownership would tighten background checks for would-be gun purchasers convicted of domestic violence or significant crimes as juveniles.
But not everyone supports this new bill. They say: “This is not a cure-all for the ways gun violence affects our nation.”
Compiled and Edited by Saachi Mehra