The winter solstice for the Northern Hemisphere occurs on
Monday, December 21, 2020 at 5:02 a.m. EST.
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| Sunrise over the St. John's River from Spring Park in Green Cove Springs. |
Winter Solstice is the astronomical moment when the Sun reaches the Tropic of Capricorn, which here in the Northern Hemisphere produces our shortest day and longest night of the year and marks the official start of winter.
At the winter solstice, the sun appears at its southernmost position and at the lowest point in the sky, and its noontime elevation seems to stay the same for several days before and after this day. The sun’s gradual decrease in the sky reverses after the winter solstice and as the hours of daylight become longer, marking what many cultures believe to be a “rebirth” of the Sun.
The term “solstice” is derived from Latin: sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still) because, during the solstice, the sun appears to stand still.