It’s well and truly winter, and with that comes the winter solstice.
Next Tuesday June 21, the southern hemisphere will experience its shortest day of the year.
So what is this astronomical phenomenon all about? And can you see anything in the sky?
What is the winter solstice?
When the earth rotates around the sun, it’s not straight. In fact, it’s tilted at around 23 degrees. Because of this, different parts of the planet are sloped towards (or away) from the sun at different times.
On Tuesday, the southern hemisphere will be tilted the furthest away from the sun – which is why it’s so cold right now.
While the winter solstice is known as the shortest day of the year, it’s not actually shorter in terms of minutes and hours. It just means we will see the least amount of daylight in 24 hours than any other day this year.
How short will the day be?
How much daylight you see on the winter solstice will vary depending on where you live. But here is a quick daylight breakdown for each state:
Sydney: 9 hours, 53 minutes of daylight
Canberra: 9 hours, 46 minutes of daylight
Melbourne: 9 hours, 32 minutes of daylight
Brisbane: 10 hours, 24 minutes of daylight
Hobart: 9 hours, 0 minutes of daylight
Adelaide: 9 hours, 48 minutes of daylight
Perth: 10 hours, 3 minutes of daylight
Darwin: 11 hours, 23 minutes of daylight
Is it also the coldest day?
Interestingly, just because the earth is tilted the furthest away from the sun, doesn’t mean it will be our coldest day. The coldest weather usually occurs after the winter solstice. This is because of a seasonal lag.
Even though we’re gradually moving towards the sun after the winter solstice, it can take some time for the earth’s temperatures in the southern hemisphere to catch up.
What will I be able to see in the night sky?
But it’s not all bad, especially if you enjoy a spot of star gazing.
Although not specific to the winter solstice, the Sydney Observatory Southern Sky Guide says all five naked eye planets – Mercury, Mars, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn – will be visible in the morning sky in June.
But that’s not all. High in the eastern sky, the constellation Scorpius is one of the brightest and most easily identifiable this month.
Sagittarius can also be found 15 degrees, or one outstretched hand span, to the east of Scorpius’s stinger.
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