Long Island marks summer solstice

As Long Islanders mark the longest day of year, Mother Nature is making it one of the nicest as well.

Monday's summer solstice, which began at 7:28 a.m., brought temperatures in the low 90s across Long Island, with slight winds and less humidity than Sunday.

While the summer solstice is technically the day with the most daylight during the year - sunrise was at 5:21 a.m. and sunset is at 8:27 p.m. - it carries that distinction by only a few seconds, Richard Castro, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Upton, said.

Of course, the summer solstice, despite its length of daylight, is not actually the peak of summer but only the beginning. The long, hot days of summer are still ahead of us because the earth's oceans have not heated up yet from winter, according to NASA.

The angle at which the sun faces the Earth causes the climb in seasonal heat, Castro said.

"Due to the tilt of the Earth on its axis, we're receiving more direct rays of sun" now, he said.

The North Pole will experience 24 hours of daylight because this is the day it points most directly at the sun, according to NASA.

The first week of summer looks promising, with just a patch of showers and thunderstorms expected Tuesday night, said Castro. Warm and partly sunny temperatures are expected for the rest of the week.