The term “Dog Days” is used during the normally hottest time of year in the Northern Hemisphere. This usually lasts from early July through the middle of August. It started a bit earlier than usual this summer. The period of 20 days either side of the conjunction of Sirius and the sun is called the “Dog Days”.

The origins, of the “Dog Days”, go back to the time of the ancient Greeks and Romans. While following the stars, during the summer, they found that a very bright star rose in the sky just before sunrise and stayed with the sun through much of the day. They named it Sirius, which seems to mean, “scorching” or “sparkling”. The ancient Egyptians noticed the rising of Sirius aligned with the seasonal floods of the Nile.

Sirius is the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major, which means Greater Dog, and is located in the dog’s neck. Sirius was dubbed the Dog Star since it was so bright. Sirius is about twice as massive as our sun and over 20 times as bright. It is about 8.6 light years from Earth. The Greeks and Romans thought the heat from Sirius combined with our Sun to produce the very hot and sultry “Dog Days” days of summer.

The real reason July and August are usually the hottest part of the year (in the Northern Hemisphere) is that we are near the end of the period when we receive more energy from the sun, during the day, versus losing energy at night.


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The term “Dog Days” is used during the normally hottest time of year in the Northern Hemisphere. This usually lasts from early July through the middle of August. It started a bit earlier than usual this summer. The period of 20 days either side of the conjunction of Sirius and the sun is called the “Dog Days”.

The origins, of the “Dog Days”, go back to the time of the ancient Greeks and Romans. While following the stars, during the summer, they found that a very bright star rose in the sky just before sunrise and stayed with the sun through much of the day. They named it Sirius, which seems to mean, “scorching” or “sparkling”. The ancient Egyptians noticed the rising of Sirius aligned with the seasonal floods of the Nile.

Sirius is the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major, which means Greater Dog, and is located in the dog’s neck. Sirius was dubbed the Dog Star since it was so bright. Sirius is about twice as massive as our sun and over 20 times as bright. It is about 8.6 light years from Earth. The Greeks and Romans thought the heat from Sirius combined with our Sun to produce the very hot and sultry “Dog Days” days of summer.

The real reason July and August are usually the hottest part of the year (in the Northern Hemisphere) is that we are near the end of the period when we receive more energy from the sun, during the day, versus losing energy at night.


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