It is today, at the end of the afternoon - at 17 h 27 minutes and 58 seconds exactly - that the beginning of winter in the northern hemisphere. This is the longest night of the year and the promise of change.
The solstice! This is one of the most important dates of the astronomical calendar.
Which divides into 4 the earth around the sun: two solstices, two equinoxes.
Equinoxes: equi noche; equality of the night.
Solstices: from Latin solstitium. Stationary sun.
At the summer solstice, he can not climb higher in the sky! And today at noon, he can not go down further down the southern horizon. One must pay attention to one thing: the Earth is not farther from the Sun than in summer, it is the opposite, but it is the axis of rotation of the Earth that leans "on the wrong side"! It's winter, the shadows are shaving and the duration of the night is maximum.
