Photos: Nearly 10,000 gather at Stonehenge to celebrate summer’s 1st sunrise

Thousands gathered around Stonehenge on Thursday morning to watch the rising sun in celebration of the start of summer.

The annual gathering in Wiltshire, England, celebrates the summer solstice, which marks the beginning of summer and is the day with the most sunlight hours in the Northern Hemisphere.

“On the summer solstice, the sun rises behind the Heel Stone, the ancient entrance to the stone circle, and sunlight is channelled into the centre of the monument,” BBC News said.

Approximately 9,500 people gathered at the historical site to watch the first sunrise of summer early Thursday morning, which was a drop in attendance of about 3,500 people compared with 2017, according to the Wiltshire Police.

While it stayed dry with few clouds inhibiting the sunrise, attendees had to brave chilly conditions on Wednesday night, with temperatures dipping around 9-11 C (48-52 F).

Hundreds of others looking to escape the massive crowds at Stonehenge gathered at nearby Avebury stone circle, according to BBC.

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