Counting summers
Summers are a natural way to measure a life. Childhood memories cluster around them, holidays are planned for them, and each one feels distinct in a way that ordinary months do not. Counted from now to an age you choose, they are a surprisingly small number: someone in their mid thirties has about 43 summers before 80. The suns above show each one, grouped by decade, with Olympic summers marked.
Seeing them laid out tends to make people plan: the trip you keep postponing, the summer with friends, the summer you learn something new. Change the age and hemisphere to match your own life.
How we calculate it
We find the date you reach the age you choose. Then we count every summer whose midpoint, mid-July in the north or mid-January in the south, falls between today and that date. Summer days are counted as 92 for a northern summer and 90 for a southern one, or 91 in a leap year. Olympic summers are those in years divisible by four, starting with Los Angeles 2028.
| Years ahead | Summers | Summer days | Summer Olympics |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 10 | 920 | 2 or 3 |
| 20 | 20 | 1,840 | 5 |
| 30 | 30 | 2,760 | 7 or 8 |
| 45 | 45 | 4,140 | 11 or 12 |
Worked example. Someone born on 12 April 1990 in the northern hemisphere, counting to age 80, has 43 summers from 2027 to 2069. That is 3,956 summer days, including 11 Summer Olympics, from Los Angeles in 2028 to the games of 2068.
Making summers count
Psychologists who study time perception say that new experiences make periods feel longer in memory, which is why childhood summers seem endless. Doing something new each summer, even small, is one of the simplest ways to make the years feel fuller.
Questions people ask
What does the age I choose mean?
It is the age you want to count up to. The page counts the summers between now and then. It is your choice, not a forecast.
When does summer start?
We use the meteorological summer: June, July and August in the northern hemisphere, and December, January and February in the southern. A summer counts if its midpoint falls between now and your chosen birthday.
Which Olympics and World Cups are included?
The Summer Olympics are held every four years: Los Angeles in 2028 and Brisbane in 2032, then every four years after that. The men’s FIFA World Cup follows the same rhythm, with 2030 and 2034 next. Hosts after those years are still to be chosen.
Is anything saved?
Only your birthday, on this device, so other pages can use it.
Sources. Meteorological seasons; International Olympic Committee and FIFA host announcements. Calculations run in your browser; nothing you enter is sent anywhere.