Winter solstice: The shortest day of the year is here!
Yay! The shortest day and longest night of the year is here...
It's a wonderful day on the East Coast! Did you know that today marks the shortest day of the year in the Southern Hemisphere? Yes, it's the winter solstice, a glorious time when nature comes out to play.
What is the Winter Solstice?
Today we celebrate the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere.
It's not about the day being shorter in terms of its 24-hour duration, but rather about the least amount of sunlight we'll receive all year. This happens because of Earth's axial tilt of about 23 degrees.
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As our planet orbits the sun, different parts receive varying amounts of sunlight throughout the year. While Mzansi experiences its winter solstice with fewer daylight hours, places like Europe bask in the warmth of summer during their summer solstice.
🌎❄️HAPPY WINTER SOLSTICE❄️🌎
— Vox Weather (@VoxWeatherZa) June 20, 2024
The 𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐄 (20 June 2024) takes place Thursday (22:50)
𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐄?
In simple terms: Shortest day of the year ( or rather day with least number of daylight ) pic.twitter.com/qMMvm3UFnw
As shared by Annette Bota from Vox Weather, the winter solstice isn't just a calendar date—it's a phenomenon deeply rooted in the Earth's astronomical dance around the sun.
“That’s why it’s winter in South Africa and summer in Europe. So when the Southern Hemisphere has winter solstice, it’s summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.”
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So why is the solstice so important?
SBS news shares evidence of the observation of solstices and astronomical events dating back thousands of years.
“In fact, the winter and summer solstice have been observed worldwide for thousands of years and were used in the earliest recorded tracking of the sun and seasonal change.”
Stay tuned for more, we will bring you the latest at East Coast Radio.
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