Winter Solstice 2021 in UK: Date, time and significance of the shortest day of the year

The winter solstice will be experienced this week, on Tuesday, in the northern hemisphere. In this phenomenon, the sun will be at its lowest height of the year during the noontime, making it the shortest day of the year. As days approach the winter solstice, the daylight hours become increasingly less. Amid the upcoming festivities in the United Kingdom, the days are becoming shorter, with longer nights and cold weather.  

The winter solstice, according to astronomers, signifies the commencement of the astronomical winter, which lasts from the solstice until the spring equinox the following year. The spring equinox will occur on March 20, 2022. 

Winter Solstice 2021 Date and Time

The winter solstice will occur on December 21, Tuesday, in which the exact time of the solstice is apparently 3.58 pm (local time) in the UK). The sun will rise at 8.03 am and set at 3.53 pm on the day of the solstice, giving London only 7 hours, 49 minutes, and 42 seconds of daylight, as per the iNews. 

The winter solstice is considered to be the day when the Earth's axis rotates to the position when the north pole is at its most tilted from the sun, resulting in the year's shortest length of daylight. During that day, the sun is directly overhead the tropic of Capricorn, at around 23.4 degrees south. At roughly 66.5 degrees north, it is also almost below the horizon from the Arctic Circle. 

Although the solstice marks the beginning of the astronomical winter season, it is also known as midwinter since the days become longer after it passes and the countdown starts for the springtime. Winter begins on December 1 of every year, according to the meteorological terminology, which divides the year into four seasons of three complete months each based on the Gregorian calendar. Furthermore, the summer solstice, which occurs approximately around June 20 and has been associated with Stonehenge and paganism, is the astronomical calendar's longest day and the start of summer. 

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