Dog Days of Summer
Posted by BC on July 28th, 2008
The Dog Days of Summer are upon those who live in the Northern Hemisphere. At least that’s what they call this time if year where I live in mid latitude of North America. Blistering heat (both sides of 100F), high humidity (60-100 relative), and random thunderstorms have been around all month, and weather predictions are for them to stick around for some time to come.
Why are these days called Dog Days of Summer?
Of course there is an astronomical component to the answer. The Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and others began using the term long ago when oppressive heat came at about the same time as the sighting of the Dog Star (Sirius). They attributed the extreme heat to the coming of that star, and so named this time of year the Dog Days of Summer.
The image used above is of Laika, the Russian dog who was sent into space. More info on Laika.
