When is the winter solstice? How much daylight will Indiana get?

Central Indiana will have less than nine and a half hours of daylight on the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year when winter officially begins this month. And while not everyone welcomes long nights coupled with less sunshine, it’s not all bad news.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association’s 2024-25 Winter Forecast, Hoosiers can expect milder temperatures overall this year thanks to La Niña, despite a freezing cold start to December.

Here’s when winter officially begins and what you should know about the December solstice.

When is the first day of winter?

The first day of winter occurs on Saturday, December 21, 2024, the date of this year’s winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.

How long will the day be on December 21st in Indiana?

According to timeanddate.com, Indianapolis will have its sunrise at approximately 8:02 a.m. and sunset at 5:23 p.m. on December 21, the winter solstice. That’s nine hours, 21 minutes and six seconds to be exact. Meanwhile, northern Indiana has slightly less daylight.

In South Bend, sunrise will occur around 8:08 a.m. and sunset at 5:17 p.m., a total of nine hours, nine minutes and two seconds of daylight. Further south in Evansville, the day will last nine hours, 31 minutes and 44 seconds.

Compare that to Fairbanks, Alaska, where sunrise on December 21 at the winter solstice is 10:58 a.m. and sunset is 2:40 p.m. — less than four hours of daylight.

What happens on the winter solstice?

The reason we have seasonal weather at all is because the Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees on its axis. Winter occurs when the northern hemisphere is furthest from the sun. And this usually happens between December 21st and 22nd, the so-called winter solstice.

The story continues after the photo gallery.

During the winter solstice, the sun reaches its lowest point in the sky, marking the shortest day and longest night of the year for all residents of Earth’s northern hemisphere, according to the National Weather Service.

The sun has now reached its highest point in the midday sky in the southern hemisphere at the Tropic of Capricorn. This means that while the United States has three months of winter, it is summer in countries like Australia and Brazil.

What does solstice mean?

Solstice is a combination of Latin words Solwhat “sun” means, and Sister means “to stop,” according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac. It is derived from the Latin word Solstitium. Or to put it another way: Solstice means “the sun stands still”.

Safety in winter:Indiana’s roads become icy every winter. How to drive with common sense in snow and ice.

What is the difference between solstices and equinoxes?

Each year there are two solstices and two equinoxes, which mark the beginning of each new season. On the winter solstice, the sun reaches its lowest point, resulting in the shortest day of the year. The summer solstice occurs when the sun reaches its highest point in the sky, marking the longest day of the year.

If you’re wondering, equinox means “equal night” in Latin, when night and day are the same length everywhere on the planet. Just like the solstice, there are two equinoxes – the vernal day (first day of spring) and the fall day (first day of fall).

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