Days Until Winter

Winter officially begins at the winter solstice — the shortest day of the year, when the sun reaches its lowest point in the sky at solar noon. In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice falls around December 21–22 each year. In the Southern Hemisphere, the seasons are reversed: December 21–22 is the summer solstice, and the winter solstice falls around June 20–21. The winter solstice occurs because Earth's axis is tilted approximately 23.5 degrees. On the winter solstice, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted maximally away from the sun, resulting in the fewest daylight hours of the year. At the Arctic Circle, the sun does not rise at all — the phenomenon known as polar night. After the winter solstice, days gradually lengthen as Earth continues its orbit, with the rate of change accelerating through spring. The winter solstice has been observed and celebrated by cultures worldwide for thousands of years. Stonehenge in England is aligned with the midwinter sunset, just as precisely as it is aligned with the midsummer sunrise. The Roman festival of Saturnalia — held around the solstice — involved gift-giving, feasting, and a temporary social role reversal. Yule, the Norse/Germanic winter solstice festival, involved burning a large log (the Yule log) to encourage the sun's return. Newgrange, a 5,200-year-old passage tomb in Ireland, is precisely aligned so that sunlight illuminates its inner chamber only during the winter solstice sunrise. Modern winter solstice celebrations often overlap with Christmas, Hanukkah, and other December holidays — all of which cluster near the solstice and share themes of light, fire, and warmth in the darkest time of year.

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