TAMPA, Fla. — It may not have felt like it this past week across the Tampa Bay area, but winter is right around the corner.
Starting at 10:58 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 21, winter officially begins in the northern hemisphere. It's also the shortest day of the year.
Even though there are fewer hours of daylight during the winter solstice, the good news is days start to become longer and longer after. So, things will only get brighter from here!
What is the winter solstice?
Unlike the meteorological first day of winter, which occurred weeks ago, the winter solstice marks the first day of the astronomical winter. The reason is that tomorrow, the earth's axis will tilt the northern hemisphere as far away from the sun as possible.
That means, simultaneously, the southern hemisphere is experiencing its summer solstice.
What happens during the solstice?
Despite the day being as short as possible, there is something else we all experience during the first day of winter. Because of the earth's tilt, the sun is also at its lowest path across the sky.
So, if you take a step outside on Tuesday you'll be able to cast your largest shadow of the year.
