In addition to the freezing temperatures and lots of snow, longer nights and shorter days are other signs of winter to come, and this week’s winter solstice marks the shortest day of the year.

Here you will find everything you need to know about the winter solstice in 2024.

What is the winter solstice?

According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, the winter solstice is considered the shortest day of the year because it has the fewest hours of daylight. It always takes place on either December 21st or 22nd.

Although some believe it lasts all day, the winter solstice actually occurs at the precise moment “when a hemisphere is tilted as far away from the sun as possible,” says the Old Farmer’s Almanac.

After the winter solstice, daylight begins to grow longer until the summer solstice in 2025, also known as the longest day of the year.

When is winter solstice 2024?

The 2024 winter solstice will occur on Saturday, December 21st at 4:20 a.m. Eastern Time.

This is also the official first day of the winter season, which lasts until the spring equinox on March 20, 2025.

How many hours of daylight will Pennsylvania have on the winter solstice?

According to timeanddate.com, sunrise in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 21st will be at 7:19 a.m. and sunset will be at 4:38 p.m.

That’s 9 hours and 19 minutes of sunlight, compared to the more than 15 hours of daylight the city experienced on June 20, this year’s summer solstice.

This article originally appeared in the Lebanon Daily News: When is the longest night of the year?