With fog in India extending up to Madhya Pradesh and Kolkata, those gasping for more daylight have good news. Today, countries in the Northern Hemisphere will witness winter solstice, which marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year as the sun reaches its southernmost point in the sky.
Officially, winter solstice marks the first day of the winter season. It is an astronomical phenomenon, occurring every year in December. The Sun's elevation with respect to Earth has reached its lowest value with the North and South Pole of the Earth observing the longest night and the longest day, respectively. From now on, days will become longer in the Northern Hemisphere, bringing some respite to cities engulfed in fog in India.
After successive days of widespread fog in North India and Rajasthan, Kolkata is the latest city to be under its grip. Kolkata experienced the first fog of the season on Saturday morning. Fog has subsided in the northern plains but enveloped parts of Madhya Pradesh, including Bhopal and Gwalior.
Some facts about winter solstice
- The term ‘solstice’ is derived from the Latin words ‘sol’ meaning Sun and ‘sisto’ which means ‘stop.’ On this day the Sun stops moving southward, pauses and begins its journey northward.
- The winter solstice occurs due to the Earth’s axis of rotation. The Sun on this day is at the southernmost point in the sky, i.e. 23.5 degrees south of the Tropic of Cancer.
- The day is shortest in the Northern Hemisphere but that does not make it the coldest day of the year as well.
picture courtesy- durangoarts.org
