KATHMANDU, Dec 21: Get ready to cozy up with your holiday lights and warm blankets, as the winter solstice arrives today, marking the shortest day and longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. On the other hand, the December solstice brings the longest day of the year to the Southern Hemisphere. As with the Northern Hemisphere, the farther a location is from the equator, the more pronounced the effect.
This year, winter solstice falls on Saturday, December 21, at 4:21 a.m. EST in the Northern Hemisphere. The Earth's tilt of approximately 23.5 degrees on its axis is the primary reason for the occurrence of the winter solstice and the changing seasons.
As our planet orbits the sun, the tilt causes the Northern and Southern Hemispheres to receive varying amounts of sunlight throughout the year. This results in contrasting seasonal differences between the two hemispheres. During the Northern Hemisphere's winter, the region receives limited daylight, while the Southern Hemisphere enjoys summer. Winter Solstice occurs when the North Pole is tilted farthest away from the sun, resulting in the least amount of daylight and the longest night of the year.
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The winter solstice occurs on specific dates in each hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphere, it falls on either December 21 or December 22 every year. In the Southern Hemisphere, the winter solstice takes place on either June 20 or June 21 annually. The date of the winter solstice varies slightly from year to year due to the Earth's elliptical orbit around the sun. The Gregorian calendar's 365-day cycle, with an extra leap day added every four years, doesn't perfectly align with the Earth's 365.25-day orbit, as per NASA.
The winter solstice carries deep cultural, historical, and astronomical importance. For centuries, people worldwide have celebrated this astronomical event and the "return" of the Sun in various ways. Ancient structures like Stonehenge are even aligned with the winter solstice's sunrise or sunset, reflecting the event's significance.
Beyond its cultural relevance, the winter solstice marks a key turning point in the Earth's orbit around the Sun. Following the solstice, days begin to lengthen, symbolising the return of light and warmth. This shift has led many cultures to view the solstice as a time of renewal and hope, celebrating the promise of brighter days ahead.
If you want to be super-precise in your observations, the exact time of the 2024 winter solstice worldwide will be 9:21 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) Saturday, according to Earthsky.org and the Royal Museums Greenwich.
Below are some examples of when 9:21 UTC will be for various local times around the Northern Hemisphere:
• Yokohama, Japan: 6:21 p.m. Saturday
• Bangkok, Thailand: 4:21 p.m. Saturday
• New Delhi: 2:51 p.m. Saturday
• Baghdad, Iraq: 12:21 p.m. Saturday
• Helsinki, Finland: 11:21 a.m. Saturday
• Lisbon, Portugal: 9:21 a.m. Saturday
• Halifax, Nova Scotia: 5:21 a.m. Saturday
• Philadelphia: 4:21 a.m. Saturday
• Mexico City: 3:21 a.m. Saturday
• Portland, Oregon: 1:21 a.m. Saturday
• Honolulu: 11:21 p.m. Friday
