Today is the
Winter Solstice. Solstice means "sun standing still" in Latin because the solstice is the time when the sun appears to stand still in the sky before daylight begins to increase. Daylight picks up speed in the spring, when we add about three minutes of daylight each day. The solstice is when the Sun is at its at its lowest daily maximum elevation in the sky during a year. The solstice itself is one moment, but many use the word to mean the day when the solstice happens.
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| By Tim Ereneta from Berkeley, CA - solstice gathering, |
The Roman Winter Solstice was celebrated by Brumalia, a festival which emerged in the 2nd Century AD to honor the rebirth of the sun god
While the Winter of Solstice is the day with the least light, the coldest week of the year is actually in late January. That's because for the next month or so the earth continues to lose more heat than the sun puts back in.
Should you see your shadows on the Winter Solstice it will be the longest shadow of the year. That's because the sun is as low in the sky as it's going to get.
