Why the latest sunsets come after summer solstice

The summer solstice has passed, but the latest sunsets of the year are happening now through early July.

Why it matters: Longer days and later sunsets are the ultimate announcement of summer's arrival for many of us in cloud-bound, seasonally sun-starved cities.

What's happening: In the Northern Hemisphere, the latest sunsets come after the summer solstice because the day is more than 24 hours long at this time of the year, writes Bruce McClure of the astronomical website EarthSky .

• Due to the tilt of the Earth's axis, days at the beginning of summer are nearly 15 seconds longer than 24 hours. Therefore, the midday sun, or solar noon, occurs slightly later in the day than it did on June 20 (summer solstice), per McClure.
• That means sunrise and sunset also occur later.
• People in the Southern Hemisphere are currently seeing the latest sunrises of the year, McClure writes.

Zoom in: Seattle's sunset on June 20 occurred at 9:10pm but will be a minute later through Friday, according Time and Date .

• Civil twilight , when the sun is 6 degrees below the horizon and you can start to see stars, occurs at 9:51pm through the end of the month.

The bottom line: 15 seconds or so isn't much, but we'll take them.