#wintersolstice — Public Fediverse posts

El Alto, Bolivia
Aymara Indigenous people raise their hands to receive the first rays of sunlight during celebrations of the Andean New Year, which marks the southern hemisphere’s winter solstice.

Photograph: Juan Karita/AP

#photography
#Bolivia
#NewYear
#WinterSolstice
#indigenous
#Aymara

Pretty intuitive animation explaining seasons, equinox, solstice, length of day and night.

Today marks the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.

[🎞️ German Valencia Garcia]

#Equinox #Seasons #Solstice #Day #Night #SummerSolstice #WinterSolstice #JuneSolstice #DecemberSolstice #MarchEquinox #SeptemberEquinox #SpringEquinox #VernalEquinox #FallEquinox #AutumnalEquinox #Earth #SolarSystem #NorthernHemisphere #SouthernHemisphere

I saved the vintage Coca-Cola ads from some magazines being discarded, and framed them for xmas decor. National Geographic, 1949. #christmas #xmas #holiday #holidays #wintersolstice #wintersolsticeholidays #yule #boxingday #stluciaday #saturnalia #newyear #newyears #newyearseve #vintage #heirloom #vintagead #vintageads #vintageadvertising #tradition #traditional

The attic of my childhood home was the first interior I designed. My color palette hasn't changed much. 1973. #interior #interiors #interiordesign #interiordesigns #interiordesigner #interiordecoration #interiordecorations #interiordecorating #interiordecorator #1970s #twentiethcentury #1970sfashion #fashion #vintagefashion #vintageclothing #doubledaybookclub #christmas #wintersolstice #christmaseve #holiday #holidays #friends #goodfriends #childhoodfriends #streisand #artwork

A Dolly Parton Christmas display I designed in my youth, but never built. Watercolor, 2025. #christmas #holiday #holidays #solstice #wintersolstice #yule #stluciaday #boxingday #hanukkah #kwanzaa #celebrate #dollyparton #christmasdisplay #xmasdisplay #holidaycutout #plywood

Sunrise, Sunset, Solstice and Perihelion

I was on the train earlier today when I remembered that we are getting close to the time when Earth reaches its perihelion, i.e. the point in its orbit when it is closest to the Sun. This occurs at 17.15 GMT tomorrow (Saturday 3rd January 2026), in fact. At this time the distance from the Sun’s centre to Earth’s centre will be 147,099,894 km  This year, aphelion (the furthest distance from the Sun) is at 18.30 GMT on July 6th 2026 at which point the centre of the Earth will be 512,087,774 km from the centre of the Sun. You can find a list of times and dates of perihelion and aphelion for future years here.

At perihelion the speed of the Earth in its orbit around the Sun is greater than at aphelion (about 30.287 km/s versus 29.291 km/s). This difference, caused by the Earth’s orbital eccentricity, contributes to the difference between mean time and solar time which, among other things, influences the time of sunrise and sunset at the winter solstice that happened a couple of weeks or so ago.

Incidentally, although the Solstice took place on 21st December, it was not until the end of 2025 that we experienced the latest sunrise. The longest day means neither the latest sunrise nor the earliest sunset. The earliest sunset was actually on December 15th in Dublin.

It surprises me how many people think that the existence of the seasons has something to do with the variation of the Earth’s distance from the Sun, thinking that the closer to the Sun we get the warmer the weather will be. The fact that perihelion occurs in the depth of winter should convince anyone living in the Northern hemisphere that this just can’t be the case, as should the fact that it’s summer in the Southern hemisphere while it is winter in the North.

The real reason for the existence of seasons is the tilt of the Earth’s axis of rotation. I used to do a little demonstration with a torch – flashlight to American readers- to illustrate this when I taught first-year astrophysics. If you shine a torch horizontally at a piece of card it will illuminate a patch of the card. Keep the torch at the same distance but tilt the card and you will see the illuminated patch increase in size. The torch is radiating the same amount of energy but in the second case that energy is spread over a larger area than in the first. This means that the energy per unit area incident on the card is decreases when the card is tilted. It is that which is responsible for winter being colder than summer. In the summer the Sun is higher in the sky (on average) than in winter. From this argument you can infer that the winter solstice not the perihelion, is the relevant astronomical indicator of winter.

That is not to say that the shape of the Earth’s orbit has no effect on terrestrial temperatures. It may, for example, contribute to the summer in the Southern hemisphere being hotter than in the North, although it is not the only effect. The Earth’s surface possesses a significant North-South asymmetry: there is a much larger fraction of ocean in the Southern hemisphere, for example, which could be responsible for moderating any differences in temperature due to insolation. The climate is a non-linear system that involves circulating air and ocean currents that respond in complicated ways and on different timescales not just to insolation but to many other parameters, including atmospheric composition (especially the amount of water vapour).

The dates when Earth reaches the extreme points on its orbit (the apsides) are not fixed because of the variations in its orbital eccentricity so, in the short-term, the dates can vary up to 2 days from one year to another. The perihelion distance varies slightly from year to year too; it will be slightly larger next year than this year, for example. There is however a long-term trend for perihelion to occur later in the year. For example, in 1246, the December Solstice (Winter Solstice for the Northern Hemisphere) was on the same day as the Earth’s perihelion. Since then, the perihelion and aphelion dates have drifted by an average of one day every 58 years. This trend will continue, meaning that by the year 6430 the timing of the perihelion and the March Equinox will coincide, although I hope to have retired by then…

#astronomy #ellipticalOrbits #perihelion #solstice #WinterSolstice

Everyone in the Valley of the Dolls is having a wonderful holiday season--no matter which holiday they choose to celebrate. #christmas #xmas #holiday #holidays #newyearseve #hanukkah #stluciaday #boxingday #zunisoyal #solstice #wintersolstice #festivus #christmastree #party

Our Christmas Trees. #christmas #solstice #wintersolstice #hanukkah #kwanzaa #stluciaday #boxingday #xmas #christmastree #christmastrees #holiday #holidays #winterholiday #axialtilt #seasons #changeofseasons #differentseasons

He estat pensant molt en els troncs de Nadal aquests dies. 
A Catalunya tenim el mundialment conegut i incomprès Tió, però el tronc de Nadal és un element comú a les cultures europees.

Els elements compartits són: un tronc al qual se li fan ofrenes i es crema la nit de Nadal, tenint les seves cendres qualitats apotropàiques (es guardaven tot l'any per curar, protegir, o s'escampaven per les terres de casa per assegurar la fertilitat dels camps).

L'altre dia estava agafant glans i picava amb un pal les branques d'alzina.
Queien les glans a munts sobre el meu cap.
Vaig pensar “és com la cavalcada de reis i els seus caramels”.
I llavors vaig fer la relació colpejar arbre = regals.
Perquè hi ha diversos arbres que es varegen per recollir-ne els fruits.
Després, el tió també es crema i tenim aquest acte d'alliberar la llum del Sol continguda dins la fusta per la màgia de la fotosíntesi.

Un ritual de solstici.
Recordar que la llum no ha marxat.
Que la Natura ens assegura la Vida, amb llum i amb fruits.

#solsticidhivern #solsticiodeinvierno #wintersolstice
#indoeuropean #quercus #alzina #agla #bellota #acorn #nadal #Natura #tradicionesdeinvierno #tradicionscatalanes #tiodenadal #yulelog #troncodeyule #folklore #etnobotanica

I haven't seen so many painted Holiday Windows since I was a child in the 1960s. What a terrific resurgence in our town! #holiday #holidaywindows #paintedwindows #paintedholidaywindows #paintedholidaywindow #christmas #hanukkah #stluciaday #boxingday #kwanzaa #newyearseve #solstice #wintersolstice

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Gay Curmudgeon! #holiday #holidays #christmas #newyear #newyears #hanukkah #yule #yuletime #kwanzaa #saturnalia #stluciasday #solstice #winter #wintersolstice #joyful #celebration #celebrations #wintercelebration #wintercelebrations

Winter Solstice // Yule // Jul

#pagan #paganlife #heathen #paganmagick
#pagansoffediverse
#noracism #nofascism #druidry #druidism #justdruidthings
#godessandgod #godandgoddess
#wintersolstice #wintersolstice2021 #winter solstice #winter solstice 2021
#spirituality with @alibo

(Ursprünglich am 21. Dezember 2021 auf Instagram gepostet.)

#ChildsPlayRadio

"Then he did the same thing to the other whos' houses, leaving crumbs much to small for the other whos' mouses..."

Tchaikovsky Two-Play!
Berlin Philharmonic, "Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy"
Shirim's Klezmer Nutcracker, "Dance of the Latke Queens"

Julie Silver, blues rocking "The Dreidel Song"

Going out on The Klezmatics, "Spin Dreydle Spin"

Tomorrow's #SourceOfTheDance will be #WinterSolstice time! (since next week we'll be past it!) #PaganLife!

Saturday the 21st is #WinterSolstice - the shortest day of the year. The #Sun is up about 5 hours here in South #Finland. In the #North it doesn't rise at all. For weeks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lseaTyspwqE

But today it's not a Black Winter Day https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxG5pjI8wLk#ddg-play

Today we have some #Wintersun https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BM6CqGE8TWQ#ddg-play

#MetalMusic #metal #music #FinnishMetal #metalli #Amorphis #VanhaPorvoo #OldPorvoo #Porvoo #Borgå #GamlaBorgå #Suomi #Finnland #Finlande #Finlandia #kaamos #darkness #PolarNight

#ArtAdventCalendar Day 10 Latvian tradition recognises numerous #LittleMothers minor goddesses or aspects of #GreatMother #Goddess who are concerned with every aspect of the human/natural world #LeafMother #SnowMother + #WindMother have been #decorating for the #WinterSolstice ❄️📷🌿 #Alberta #pagan #animist #nature

My dear late friend, Ellen, on Christmas Eve in Mifflintown, 1994. #christmas #christmaseve #winter #wintersolstice #solstice #holiday #celebration #holidays #1990s #vintagechristmas #friends

The #JuneSolstice will occur at 2050Z today. So that will be on the 21 June for the majority of the population of the planet. It’s the #LongestDay or #LongestNight of the year depending on your latitude. Roll on #summer or #winter.

#Solstice #SummerSolstice #WinterSolstice

The garden is still glowing on this Winter Solstice! 💚🧡🌶️

I hope you're all able to find some light today. 🕯️

#WinterSolstice #SpicyPeppers #RavenholmSpices

#SummerSolstice by @XKCD comic - except for readers in the southern hemisphere where it's their #WinterSolstice. https://xkcd.com/2792/ #JuneSolstice #astronomy

"Three Sun Paths" is #NASA #astronomy picture of the day, showing locations of the Sun in the sky on equinox and summer & winter #solstice. Happy #JuneSolstice! Today is #SummerSolstice in the north, #WinterSolstice in the south. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230621.html

It's the June (summer/winter) solstice period on this pale blue dot, and was a hot one here, getting up to 36-37 C. Sun's up early and went away late, all as the cycle continues... #JuneSolstice #SummerSolstice #WinterSolstice #PaleBlueDot

Yesterday evening I was lucky to be able to climb to the top of Chester Cathedral to take this photograph and mark the winter solstice. The view extends out to North Wales and the most prominent building is the Town Hall. #wintersolstice #chester #chestercathedral #chestertownhall #storyhouse #cheshire #northwales

Have a #wonderful #Winter #Wednesday ❄😊

#BabyYoda in the #snow with some #frozen #flowers in our front #garden ❄🥰

#snowmageddon2022 #Grogu #MayTheForceBeWithYou #StarWars #figurine #miniature #Saanich #Wsanec #SnowDay #vanisle #VancouverIsland #PNW #PacificNorthwest #December #WinterSolstice #WhiteOut #WinterWonderland #BritishColumbia #Canada #CuteStuff #Cheerful #WellWishes #SeasonsGreetings #SmileMaker #Mandalorian

Have a #wonderful #Winter #Wednesday ❄😊

#BabyYoda in the #snow with some #frozen #flowers in our front #garden ❄🥰

#snowmageddon2022 #Grogu #MayTheForceBeWithYou #StarWars #figurine #miniature #Saanich #Wsanec #SnowDay #vanisle #VancouverIsland #PNW #PacificNorthwest #December #WinterSolstice #WhiteOut #WinterWonderland #BritishColumbia #Canada #CuteStuff #Cheerful #WellWishes #SeasonsGreetings #SmileMaker #Mandalorian

Have a #wonderful #Winter #Wednesday ❄😊

#BabyYoda in the #snow with some #frozen #flowers in our front #garden ❄🥰

#snowmageddon2022 #Grogu #MayTheForceBeWithYou #StarWars #figurine #miniature #Saanich #Wsanec #SnowDay #vanisle #VancouverIsland #PNW #PacificNorthwest #December #WinterSolstice #WhiteOut #WinterWonderland #BritishColumbia #Canada #CuteStuff #Cheerful #WellWishes #SeasonsGreetings #SmileMaker #Mandalorian

Have a #wonderful #Winter #Wednesday ❄😊

#BabyYoda in the #snow with some #frozen #flowers in our front #garden ❄🥰

#snowmageddon2022 #Grogu #MayTheForceBeWithYou #StarWars #figurine #miniature #Saanich #Wsanec #SnowDay #vanisle #VancouverIsland #PNW #PacificNorthwest #December #WinterSolstice #WhiteOut #WinterWonderland #BritishColumbia #Canada #CuteStuff #Cheerful #WellWishes #SeasonsGreetings #SmileMaker #Mandalorian

Just 8 Magickal Days until Yule!💙🌬❄️🤍⛄️☃️💚🎄🍄❤️🧤🎅💝🤶🎁💛🔔🧑‍🎄

#yule #pagan #wheeloftheyear #wicca #wiccan #witchy #witch #witchcraft #heathen #jül #winterwitch #WinterSolstice #yuletide

#OneOfOurAircraftIsMissing (42) #TheWayAhead (44)
#Odette (50) #HotelSahara (51) #TheMagicBox (51)
#QuoVadis (51) #LePlaisir (52) #TheEgyptian (54)
#PeerGynt (54) #LolaMontes (55) #TheSpies (57) #Spartacus (60) #TheSundowners (60) #BillyBudd (62) #Topkapi (64) #HotMillions (68)
#BlackbeardsGhost (68) #Gideon (71) #RobinHood (73) #OneOfOurDinosaursIsMissing (75) #LogansRun (76) #DoubleMurder (77) #DeathOnTheNile (78) #TheThiefOfBaghdad (78) #Ashanti (79)
#EvilUnderTheSun (82) #DeadMansFolly (86) #StiffUpperLips (97) #AnimalFarm (99) #TheBachelor (99) #WinterSolstice (03)

#GoneButNotForgotten
#PeterUstinov (1921-2004)
#KnightsOfFilm #FilmMastodon 📽️ 🎬

Just 9 Magickal Days until Yule!💙🌬❄️🤍⛄️☃️💚🎄🍄❤️🧤🎅💝🤶🎁💛🔔🧑‍🎄

#yule #pagan #wheeloftheyear #wicca #wiccan #witchy #witch #witchcraft #heathen #jül #winterwitch #WinterSolstice #yuletide

Just 13 Magickal Days until Yule!💙🌬❄️🤍⛄️☃️💚🎄🍄❤️🧤🎅💝🤶🎁💛🔔🧑‍🎄

#yule #pagan #wheeloftheyear #wicca #wiccan #witchy #witch #witchcraft #heathen #jül #winterwitch #WinterSolstice #yuletide

Just 15 Magickal Days until Yule!💙🌬❄️🤍⛄️☃️💚🎄🍄❤️🧤🎅💝🤶🎁💛🔔🧑‍🎄
#yule #pagan #wheeloftheyear #wicca #wiccan #witchy #witch #witchcraft #heathen #jül #winterwitch #WinterSolstice #yuletide

Just 20 Magickal Days until Yule!💙🌬❄️🤍⛄️☃️💚🎄🍄❤️🧤🎅💝🤶🎁💛🔔🧑‍🎄
#yule #pagan #wheeloftheyear #wicca #wiccan #witchy #witch #witchcraft #heathen #jül #winterwitch #WinterSolstice #yuletide

Just 3 Magickal Weeks until Yule!💙🌬❄️🤍⛄️☃️💚🎄🍄❤️🧤🎅💝🤶🎁💛🔔🧑‍🎄
#yule #pagan #wheeloftheyear #wicca #wiccan #witchy #witch #witchcraft #heathen #jül #winterwitch #WinterSolstice #yuletide