Winter solstice Dec 21, 2025

Ever felt as if the night just wouldn"t end? That"s the winter solstice working its magic. It is the shortest day and longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, occurring around December 21 or 22. In the Southern Hemisphere, the same happens around June 21 or 22. It marks the moment when one of Earth"s poles tilts farthest from the sun. From that instant, daylight slowly begins to lengthen again.

© Schon/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Rainbow around the sun
Dec 21, 2023Ljubljana, Slovenia
Dec 21, 2024Happy winter solstice!

More Desktop Wallpapers:

What are these colorful insects?
Gravity-defying wonders of the world
A road not for the faint of heart
If these walls could talk...
Jul 23, 2024Methoni Castle, Messinia, Greece
May 14, 2025Porto Flavia, Sulcis-Iglesiente, Sardinia, Italy
Nov 28, 2023Varandha Ghat,Bhor,Maharashtra, India
A bevy of buzzers
What the heck is a distaff?
Feb 9, 2024Pegadung Rock, Lampung, Sumatra, Indonesia
Jul 27, 2025Barracudas at Shark Reef, Ras Mohammed National Park, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
Apr 19, 2025Zion National Park, Utah, United States
Mar 31, 2024Happy Easter!
Aug 24, 2025European fallow deer in England
Apr 24, 2026Everglades National Park, Florida, United States
Sep 9, 2025A female Eurasian red squirrel, Switzerland
Nov 17, 2025Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, United States
Mar 16, 2026National Panda Day
Solo on the savannah
Nov 16, 2024Wadden Sea coast, Friesland, Netherlands
Jun 28, 2024Stonewall uprising anniversary
Nov 28, 2025Val Brandet, Brescia, Lombardy, Italy
Chilling out on an ice floe
Jun 25, 2025Glastonbury Festival begins
May 9, 2026Skradinski Buk Waterfall, Krka National Park, Croatia
Mar 21, 2025Happy International Day of Forests!
Stairway to where?
Kickoff in Qatar
Jan 31, 2024Rietvlei Nature Reserve, South Africa
Jul 13, 2025International Rock Day