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The sunrise over Lake Michigan on the winter solstice as viewed from Veterans Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (United States)
Photo: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Sky and seasons · Worldwide

December solstice is coming up.

Monday, 21 December 2026

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A week before, the day before and on the day. No account, nothing else.

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Shortest day in the north, longest in the south

About December solstice

The December solstice is the moment the Sun reaches its southernmost point in the sky: the shortest day in the Northern Hemisphere and the longest in the Southern.

In 2026 it falls on a Monday; in 2027 it’s on Wednesday 22 December, and in 2028 on Thursday 21 December. Also in December 2026: World Meditation Day (21 Dec), World Basketball Day (21 Dec) and Armed Forces Day (Philippines) (21 Dec). From this page you can add it to your calendar, get an email before it, share the countdown, or show it full screen.

How we work out the date
We calculate the exact moment with Meeus’ method and check it against published times, so the date and time follow your time zone.
Sources

Calculated with Jean Meeus’ method (Astronomical Algorithms).

Page updated 5 November 2026. Report a wrong date

Dates

YearDate
202621 December, 20:50 UTC
202722 December, 02:42 UTC
202821 December, 08:20 UTC
202921 December, 14:14 UTC
203021 December, 20:09 UTC
203122 December, 01:56 UTC
203221 December, 07:56 UTC
203321 December, 13:45 UTC
203421 December, 19:34 UTC
203522 December, 01:31 UTC

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