AUSTIN, Texas – Friday, December 21, 2018, marks the winter solstice, which means autumn has ended and winter is officially here.

The winter solstice is actually the moment in time -- 4:23 p.m. -- when the Earth's tilt away from the Sun is at its maximum. 

It's the shortest day of the year with about 10 hours and 12 minutes of sunlight in our part of Texas, and the lowest Sun angle of the year.

MORE | Frosty forecast predicted for Texas winter

There are two special lines of latitude on a globe of the world: one in the Northern Hemisphere is called the Tropic of Cancer, and one in the Southern Hemisphere is called the Tropic of Capricorn.

 

Photo Credit: NOAA: Przemyslaw Idzkiewicz, via Wikipedia Commons


These are the latitudes where the Sun is directly overhead at noon once a year. In the Northern hemisphere, the sun shines over the Tropic of Cancer on the summer solstice, usually June 21, the longest day of the year. In the Southern Hemisphere, the sun is directly over the Tropic of Capricorn for the winter solstice, usually December 21.