~
Winter Solstice - 2021
photo collage by Styrous®
Today is the shortest day of the year. The winter solstice, which marks the beginning of the astronomical winter in the Northern Hemisphere, is today. I have always felt this day is actually the end of the old year and the beginning of the new year.
The
solstice occurs at the same instant everywhere on Earth. The Earth's
tilted axis causes the seasons. The winter solstice, which marks the
beginning of astronomical winter in the Northern Hemisphere. It's the precise moment at which the Northern Hemisphere is tilted farthest from the sun.
Meteorologists
use a different method of defining the first day of winter. And, in
some countries, the beginning of the seasons is determined by average
temperatures rather than fixed dates or astronomical events.
Rogers and Hart wrote a love song about this day entitled, The Shortest Day of the Year, from the musical, The Boys from Syracuse which was based on the William Shakespeare play, The Comedy of Errors (link below).
The Boys from Syracuse poster
There is a two hour video on YouTube of the Solstice as it's happening at Newgrange, a prehistoric monument in County Meath, Ireland, located 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) west of Drogheda on the north side of the River Boyne. It is an exceptionally grand passage tomb built during the Neolithic period, around 3200 BC, making it older than Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids (link below).
Net links:
Almanac ~ Winter Solstice 2021
Britannica ~ Winter Solstice
EarthSky ~ 2021’s December solstice falls on the 21st
Mother ~ How To Celebrate the Winter Solstice
USA Today ~ The shortest day of the year is Tuesday
Youtube links:
Winter Solstice 2021: 5 Things We Need to Know (astrology)
Newgrange monument ~ Winter Solstice - Monday 21 December 2021 (documentary) (48 mins., 29 secs.)
Newgrange monument ~ Winter Solstice - Monday 21 December 2021 (2 hrs., 2 mins.)
Rogers & Hart ~ The Shortest Day of the Year Styrous® ~ Tuesday, December 21, 2021
