December Solstice: Shortest and Longest Day of the Year

Posted by Kudos Community • Profile • 12/19/24 at 03:45AM • Environment - Energy - Sustainability • Public Interest • Science - Tech - Astronomy • See more by Kudos Community

December 21 2024 - A solstice is an event in which the earth’s poles are most extremely inclined toward or away from the sun, at about 23.5 degrees. Solstices happen twice a year, June and December, marking the change of seasons to summer and winter. During the December solstice, the sun is directly over the Tropic of Capricorn at noon and it marks the Northern Hemisphere's astronomical beginning of winter with the shortest period of daylight. In the Southern Hemisphere, it marks the beginning of astronomical summer with the day having the longest period of daylight of the year. More

During the solstices, Earth's tilt is at the greatest angle to the plane of its orbit, causing one hemisphere to receive more daylight than the other.