Southern California Winter Solstice Thursday December 21 2023.
Griffith Park Observatory Live Winter Solstice Observation is Thursday December 21 2023.
Griffith Observatory Winter Solstice Event at Sunset
This event may be cancelled due to weather
Meet at the Observatory West Terrace at 4:40pm.
Griffith Observatory marks the start of winter in the northern hemisphere with a live online talk (weather permitting) focused on the setting Sun.
Observatory staff will discuss how the Sun’s changing path across the sky causes seasonal changes and determines where the Sun sets on the western horizon.
Griffith Observatory Explains Winter Solstice
The Winter Solstice is the astronomical end of fall, and the start of winter.
The winter solstice is the day when the Sun at solar noon is the lowest in the sky and the time from sunrise to sunset is the shortest for the year.
Winter begins in Earth’s northern hemisphere at 7:27pm(pst) on December 21 2023.
Summer begins in the southern hemisphere at the same time. The December/winter solstice occurs when the Sun reaches its minimum declination (-23.5 degrees).
This is when the northern hemisphere of Earth is tilted as far away from the Sun as possible during a given year.
From the autumnal equinox until the start of winter – the winter solstice in December – days become shorter, and the local noon elevation of the Sun decreases.
This happens because the Earth’s axis is tilted 23½ degrees to its orbit. December 21 is the shortest day of the year.
NASA Winter Solstice Info Is Online
Check Out Griffith Observatory On YouTube
Griffith Observatory is located at 2800 East Observatory Road in Los Angeles
