A Good Day and Night

The winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere is when the sun is at its lowest inclination in the northern sky, and we have the most darkness (longest night) and the least daylight (shortest day).

The winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere is when the sun is at its lowest inclination in the northern sky, and we have the most darkness (longest night) and least daylight (shortest day).

The word Solstice comes from the Latin words ‘sol’ meaning the sun and ‘stit’ meaning 'stopped or stationery’. ?So the sun’s journey north can finally stop, and it can then start journeying south.

This year, the sun is at its furthest north at 8:59pm GMT on Thursday 20 June. This is 10:59pm at Geotheta’s head office in South Africa.

This time also marks the start of the lengthening of days, a journey back to spring, the birds commencing their migration south, and the start of the re-growth of the trees, grass, and plants that go dormant in winter! It’s like the start of new beginnings!