The winter solstice marks the start of the astronomical winter which finishes on March 20 next year.

Why does the winter solstice happen?

The term solstice comes from the Latin word ‘solstitium’ which translates to ‘sun standing still’.

On the day of the solstice, the sun seemingly stands still at the Tropic of Capricorn and then reverses its direction as it reaches its most southern point as seen from Earth.