TOThis year too we have reached the winter solstice and Friday 22 Decemberand next will therefore be the shortest day of the yearor. This will mean that darkness and night will reach their maximum duration and, conversely, that light and the sun will have their minimum duration. The good news, however, is that from the next day the days will get longer again.
Winter Solstice: the shortest day of the year
The winter solstice also marks the transition from autumn to winter and, although we tend to always associate it with December 21st, it does not fall on a specific date, but usually occurs between December 20th and 23rd. This happens because its arrival is delayed every year by 5 hours, 48 minutes and 46 seconds to be precisea phase shift then balanced by the leap year introduced precisely to avoid “losing too many days” compared to the calendar.
But also the beginning of the colder season
The term solstice derives from Latin and is an astronomical phenomenon linked to the inclination of the Earth’s rotation axis with respect to the ecliptic. It occurs when the Sun illuminates an area of the Planet for fewer hours. In our hemisphere it corresponds to the beginning of winter and cold not because the Sun is further from the Earth, but only because the sun’s rays arrive very inclined.
The start of the coldest season of the year will fall on Friday, December 22. And the shortest day will also be the one with the least hours of light. (Getty)
Solstice and rituals
To the phenomenon of The winter solstice has been linked to beliefs and legends since ancient times: In Mexico, for example, the Incas honored the god Inti and the Aztecs honored the gods Huitzilopochtli and Bacab. In ancient Rome, however, Saturnalia was celebrated, a day in which social distinctions were eliminated.
The link between the winter solstice and Christmas
There Christmas Day was set for December 25th by Pope Julius I precisely for reasons linked to the solstice: it, in fact, was celebrated as an ancient pagan festival of the sun considering the day not only the beginning of the coldest season of the year, but also the day the days start getting longer again.
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