Summer Solstice (Xiazhi 夏至): dates, pentads and meaning
The Sun is overhead at the Tropic of Cancer: the longest day and shortest night in the Northern Hemisphere. Zhi (至) means "reaching the extreme." The Tropic of Cancer runs through Chiayi and Hualien, so at noon on the solstice the Sun is almost straight overhead and an upright pole casts almost no shadow.
Summer Solstice dates, 2026–2035
| Year | Date | Time (Taiwan, UTC+8) | Month pillar |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | June 21 | 16:24 | still Jia-Wu 甲午 month |
| 2027 | June 21 | 22:10 | still Bing-Wu 丙午 month |
| 2028 | June 21 | 04:02 | still Wu-Wu 戊午 month |
| 2029 | June 21 | 09:48 | still Geng-Wu 庚午 month |
| 2030 | June 21 | 15:31 | still Ren-Wu 壬午 month |
| 2031 | June 21 | 21:17 | still Jia-Wu 甲午 month |
| 2032 | June 21 | 03:08 | still Bing-Wu 丙午 month |
| 2033 | June 21 | 09:01 | still Wu-Wu 戊午 month |
| 2034 | June 21 | 14:44 | still Geng-Wu 庚午 month |
| 2035 | June 21 | 20:33 | still Ren-Wu 壬午 month |
Times computed by our calendar code (UTC+8); they agree with an astronomical calculation to within about a minute. Between 1901 and 2100, Summer Solstice always falls on June 20–22. Subtract 8 hours for UTC.
The three pentads of Summer Solstice
| Sign of the season | When | |
|---|---|---|
| First pentad | Deer shed their antlers (鹿角解) | about days 1–5 after Summer Solstice |
| Second pentad | Cicadas begin to sing (蜩始鳴) | about days 6–10 after Summer Solstice |
| Third pentad | Crow-dipper (Pinellia) sprouts (半夏生) | about days 11–15 after Summer Solstice |
The ancients split each solar term into three pentads (hou 候) of about five days each, and marked them by changes in birds, animals and plants: seventy-two pentads a year. These follow the standard list in Wu Cheng's Yuan-dynasty Collected Explanations of the Seventy-Two Pentads. They were observed in the Yellow River basin, so they do not always match what you see in Taiwan, let alone elsewhere. Some, like hawks turning into doves, record old beliefs rather than biology.
Summer Solstice in the sky: where the Sun is
The solar terms follow the Sun along the ecliptic: one term for every 15°, and Summer Solstice is the moment the Sun reaches longitude 90°. In 2027, at Summer Solstice the Sun sits against the stars of Taurus (drowned out by daylight, of course). That day in Taipei the Sun rises at 05:04 and sets at 18:46, about 13 h 42 min of daylight; on the Tropic of Cancer at Chiayi, the noon Sun stands about 90.0° high, almost directly overhead.
What Summer Solstice means in BaZi
Summer Solstice is a qi (氣), or "middle term" (中氣): it falls in the middle of the Wu month (午), so the BaZi month pillar does not change here; it is the same Wu month before and after. Middle terms matter in the calendar for another reason: a lunar month with no middle term in it becomes the leap month.
BaZi months are not counted from the lunar new moon but from the jie terms: Start of Spring, Awakening of Insects, Pure Brightness, Start of Summer, Grain in Ear, Minor Heat, Start of Autumn, White Dew, Cold Dew, Start of Winter, Major Snow and Minor Cold each open a month. If you were born on the day of a jie term, within a few hours of it, your month pillar (and for the Start of Spring, your year pillar too) can shift by one; it depends on the exact time. See solar term boundaries, and for how the month's heavenly stem is worked out, the month pillar.
Look up the solar terms for any year
Pick a year to list the exact time of all 24 solar terms (Taiwan time, UTC+8) and the month pillar each jie term starts. Add a month and day, such as a birthday, to see which solar-term period it falls in and its month pillar. Everything is calculated in your browser.
The times come from the same calendar code our BaZi charts use; for 1901–2100 they agree with an astronomical calculation to within about a minute. If you were born within minutes of a term changing, see solar term boundaries.
The terms before and after
The previous term is Grain in Ear; the next is Minor Heat.
A straight word: solar terms are astronomy; luck is something else
The twenty-four solar terms divide the year by the Sun's position on the ecliptic, and their times can be computed to the second. BaZi uses them to change the year and the month; that is a rule of calculation. A solar term carries no good or bad luck of its own, and no term is a "better" one to be born in: a chart is read as a whole, by its Five Elements and Ten Gods. Everything on this site is for reference and entertainment.
Solar terms set the month; the month sets strength
Enter your birth date for a free Four Pillars chart and see your month element and the balance of your whole chart.
Summer Solstice: common questions
What date is Summer Solstice in 2026?
In 2026, Summer Solstice falls on June 21 at 16:24 Taiwan time (UTC+8); in 2027 it is June 21 at 22:10.
Why does Summer Solstice move from year to year?
A solar term is the moment the Sun reaches a set longitude, here 90°. A year is about 365.24 days, not a whole number, and leap years reset the count, so the date drifts within a few days. From 1901 to 2100, Summer Solstice always falls on June 20–22.
What are the three pentads of Summer Solstice?
First: Deer shed their antlers (鹿角解); second: Cicadas begin to sing (蜩始鳴); third: Crow-dipper (Pinellia) sprouts (半夏生). They follow the standard Yuan-dynasty list.
What does Summer Solstice do in a BaZi chart?
It is the middle term of the Wu month, so the month pillar does not change. BaZi changes months only at the jie terms.