Solstices and astronomical equinoxes in 2024 and the remainder of 2023
When does winter and the winter solstice 2023 start?
According to NASA, this year's winter solstice will occur at 9:27 p.m. on December 21, making it the shortest day of the year in terms of daylight length.
What is the winter solstice?
Not only does the solstice mark the least amount of daylight, with Chicago experiencing less than nine hours and eight minutes of daylight on December 21, but it also marks the moment when the Earth's axis tilts away from the sun.
As a result, the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere represents the summer solstice in the Southern Hemisphere.
At the summer solstice in the Chicago area, the Earth's axis is at its closest point to the sun in its annual cycle.
What does this mean for sunrise and sunset times?
Because the calendar does not perfectly reflect Earth's movements in space, the solstice does not mean the Chicago area will see its closest sunset.
The first sunset of the year occurred earlier this month in Chicago, just after 4:19 p.m. In fact, on December 15, the sun will set at 4:20 p.m., showing that setting begins to increase later in the week before the solstice.
However, the days are still getting shorter, because sunrise is occurring later and later, and this will continue until early January, when sunrise will occur at around 7:18 a.m.
Winter Solstice 2023: The first day of winter is also the shortest day of the year
Is December 21st the shortest day of the year?
The lack of direct light from the sun on December 21 makes it the shortest day of the year for the United States. “All locations north of the equator experience daylight less than 12 hours and all locations southward experience daylight longer than 12 hours,” according to NASA.
Why is the winter solstice called the first day of winter?
The astronomical solstices are the beginning of the winter and summer astronomical seasons.
According to the National Centers for Environmental Information, astronomical seasons are defined by solstices and equinoxes, which are the points at which the Sun aligns above the equator. Unlike the astronomical seasons, the meteorological seasons divide the year into groups of three months based on temperature cycles and are "more closely related to the monthly civil calendar than the astronomical seasons."
What happens after the winter solstice?
On the bright side, each day after the solstice in the Northern Hemisphere will get more daylight, until the summer solstice on June 20, 2024.
These are the dates for the upcoming equinoxes and solstices in 2024, as well as the quarter days - the calendar marks between these events - some of which may surprise you:
Quarter Day: February 2 - Earth Hedgehog Day
Vernal equalization 2024: March 19
Day of the Cross: May 1 - Labor Day
Summer Solstice 2024: June 20
Quarter Day: August 1 - Lamas
Autumn even 2024: September 22
Quarter Day: October 31 - Halloween
Winter Solstice 2024: December 21
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