When is Winter solstice 2022, the shortest day of year? Timings, reason, and other details

After the Summer Solstice in June, days start getting shorter. In the Northern Hemisphere, nights become longer day by day until we reach the Winter Solstice in December. Winter solstice marks the shortest day of the year and the official first day of winter.

Winter Solstice for the year 2022 is on December 21. This day marks the beginning of the winter season. This phenomenon has always fascinated people from all regions. Let's take a look at the science behind this.

The science behind Winter Solstice

On the day of the Winter Solstice, the sun is present directly above the Tropic of Capricorn. That is the southernmost position the Sun takes in the entire year. This makes the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.


Whereas, the situation in the Southern Hemisphere is completely opposite. The Winter Solstice marks the beginning of the Summer, and it is the longest day of the year. Some of the regions in the Southern Hemisphere that face the longest day of the year on the Winter Solstice are South Africa, New Zealand, Madagascar, and Argentina.

Occurrence of the Winter Solstice

The Winter Solstice usually falls on December 21. But that's not the case every year. This is because the solar year and our calendar don't exactly match. So the Winter Solstice can shift by a day or two.

Farmers' Almanac and EarthSky.org reported that the exact time of the Winter Solstice this year is 21 December, 21:48 UTC. So if you are planning to catch a glimpse, you now know when to. This year, the Winter Solstice is 6 hours later than last year.

When can I watch Winter Solstice in my region?

Honolulu - Wednesday, 11:48 AM
San Francisco - Wednesday, 1:48 PM
Winnipeg, Manitoba - Wednesday, 3:48 PM
North Carolina, Charlotte - Wednesday, 4:48 PM
Denmark, Copenhagen - Wednesday, 10:48 PM
Jerusalem - Wednesday, 11:48 PM
Istanbul - Thursday, 12:48 AM
New Delhi - Thursday, 3:18 AM
Vietnam, Hanoi - Thursday, 4:48 AM
Tokyo - Thursday, 6:48 AM

FAQs:

1. When is Winter Solstice?
   The exact time of the 2022 winter solstice will be 21:48 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) on Wednesday, according to EarthSky.org and Farmers' Almanac.
2. What is Winter Solstice?
   Winter Solstice, the day is the smallest of the year.