Winter Solstice: Embracing the Darkness of the Year
Discover the magic of the winter solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year Explore its scientific significance and cultural traditions worldwide
Since the summer solstice in June, the days in the Northern Hemisphere have become shorter and the nights longer. But this trend is about to change.
The winter solstice, marking the shortest day of the year and the official start of winter, will occur on Thursday, December 21, this year (for most of the Americas). The fascinating workings of the solstices, along with the spring and fall equinoxes, have captured the interest of people for millennia.
Its a day when science intermixes with ancient traditions around the world.
Solstices and Earths hemispheres
During the winter solstice, the Northern Hemisphere experiences the shortest day and longest night of the year, as the sun reaches its southernmost position directly overhead the Tropic of Capricorn. Conversely, in the Southern Hemisphere, where only about 10% of the world's population resides, the situation is reversed.
There, the December solstice marks the longest day of the year - and the beginning of summer - in places such as Argentina, Madagascar, New Zealand and South Africa.
When exactly does winter solstice occur?
The solstice typically occurs on December 21, although it can vary by a day due to the discrepancy between the solar year and our calendar year. For those seeking precision, the exact time of the 2023 winter solstice worldwide is estimated to be 3:27 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) on Thursday, as reported by Earthsky.org and the Farmers Almanac.
Due to time zone variances, Europe, Africa, and Asia will officially observe their winter solstice on Friday, December 22. Here are a few examples of when 3:27 UTC will occur for different local times across the Northern Hemisphere:
On December 20, 2022, a man strolls across a bridge as the faint light of sunset bathes Tokyo. The residents of Japan's capital will experience nine hours and 44 minutes of daylight on the winter solstice.
Photo credit: Yuichi Yamazaki/AFP/Getty Images
• The current time in different cities around the world:
- Tokyo, Japan: 12:27 p.m. Friday
- Bangkok, Thailand: 10:27 a.m. Friday
- Kolkata, India: 8:57 a.m. Friday
- Istanbul, Turkey: 6:27 a.m. Friday
- Helsinki, Finland: 5:27 a.m. Friday
- Milan, Italy: 4:27 a.m. Friday
- Halifax, Nova Scotia: 11:27 p.m. Thursday
- Baltimore, Maryland: 10:27 p.m. Thursday
- Mexico City: 9:27 p.m. Thursday
- San Francisco, California: 7:27 p.m. Thursday
- Honolulu, Hawaii: 5:27 p.m. Thursday
To find out the time in your location, you can use the conversion table on the EarthSky website or simply enter your city in the "Converted Time" box.
What places feel the effects the most?
Daylight decreases dramatically the closer you are to the North Pole on winter solstice.
are perfect for exploring any time of the year.
In Paris, despite being at a higher latitude, there are still a respectable eight hours and 14 minutes of daylight to enjoy. However, the difference is much more noticeable in Oslo, Norway, where the sun rises at 9:17 a.m. and sets at 3:11 p.m., leaving less than six hours of weak daylight. Perhaps a sun lamp would come in handy?
What causes the winter solstice?
Nome, Alaska, will experience just three hours and 54 minutes of very weak daylight, leaving residents sunlight deprived. However, the situation is even more extreme in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, which sits inside the Arctic Circle and will not see a single ray of sunshine.
Displayed are three images taken by NOAA's GOES East (GOES-16) satellite, providing a glimpse of Earth from space close to the winter solstice. These images were taken approximately 24 hours prior to the 2018 winter solstice.
The tilt of Earth's rotational axis causes seasons to change. As the planet orbits the sun, each hemisphere has winter when it tilts away from the sun and summer when it tilts towards the sun.
Winter solstice traditions
The exact cause of this event remains a mystery to scientists, but it is believed that billions of years ago, during the formation of the solar system, Earth experienced powerful collisions that led to a shift in its axis.
Many cultures and religions around the world have been known to celebrate holidays such as Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and pagan festivals, all of which coincide with the return of longer days. The ancient peoples, whose survival relied on a deep understanding of seasonal cycles, marked the first day of winter with elaborate ceremonies and celebrations. These festivities held a deep spiritual significance, symbolizing the opportunity for renewal.
Maria Kennedy, an assistant teaching professor in the Department of American Studies at Rutgers University, explained to CNN Travel via email that Christmas likely takes many of its customs and its date on the calendar from the pagan Roman festivals of Saturnalia and Kalends.
Saturnalia began on December 17 and Kalends began on January 1, according to Kennedy, an expert in Christmas studies. Referring to scholarly research, Kennedy explained that the early leaders of the Christian church disapproved of the traditions associated with these celebrations, yet they continued to be widely observed. Over time, Christmas observance by Christians became connected to the same period on the calendar, despite the absence of a specific date for Jesus' birth in the Gospels.
Heres more on a few of those ancient customs:
Alban Arthan
A woman chants as people gather in a circle to witness the winter solstice on December 21, 2022, in Newgrange, Ireland.
Alban Arthan, in the Welsh language, translates to "Light of Winter," as reported by the Farmers Almanac. It is believed to be one of the oldest seasonal festivals in human history and is a part of Druidic traditions. The winter solstice is regarded as a period of both death and rebirth.
Newgrange, a prehistoric monument built in Ireland around 3200 BC, is associated with the Alban Arthan festival.
Saturnalia
During the seven-day celebration of Saturnalia in Ancient Rome, the festival honored Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture. The festivities were similar to modern-day Mardi Gras celebrations, with carnival-like activities and a temporary halt in war-making. Slaves were given freedoms and moral restrictions were relaxed during this time. Saturnalia persisted into the third and fourth centuries AD.
Dongzhi
The annual occasion was not only celebrated by ancient Europeans, as the Dongzhi Winter Solstice Festival also has its origins in ancient Chinese culture. The name roughly translates to "extreme of winter."
This was believed to be the peak of yin in Chinese medicine theory, symbolizing darkness, cold, and stillness on the longest day of winter. Dongzhi signifies the return of yang, signifying the gradual increase of light and warmth. In some East Asian cultures, dumplings are traditionally consumed to celebrate this occasion.
