21/12/2024
Happy Winter ❄️🌞🎉
🇬🇧 Today is the first day of winter. The astronomical start of a season is based on the position of the Earth in relation to the Sun. The start of each season is marked by either a solstice (winter and summer) or an equinox (spring and autumn). A solstice takes place when the Sun reaches the most southerly or northerly point in the sky, while an equinox marks the point when the Sun passes over Earth's equator.
The winter solstice occurs when one of the Earth's poles, the north pole in the case of the Northern Hemisphere, has its maximum tilt away from the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere. The winter solstice is the day with the shortest period of daylight and longest night of the year for us. The sun rose at 07:08 and will set at 16:51 today. This means 9 hours, 43 minutes and 19 seconds of daylight. The Sun is at its lowest daily maximum elevation in the sky locally. At the North Pole, there is continuous darkness today. On the other hand, the South Pole enjoys a day of continuous daylight. The winter solstice marks the beginning of winter. Because of leap years, the dates of the equinoxes and solstices can shift by a day or two over time, causing the start dates of the seasons to shift too. This year, winter starts today, exactly at 10:21.
Since prehistory, the winter solstice has been seen as a significant time of year in many cultures, and has been marked by festivals and rituals. On the first day of each season, the Sun rises in a particular alignment to the prehistoric temples of Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra. They are so systematic that it is very probable that these orientations were intentional. In prehistory, the observation of the motion of celestial bodies was related to the changing season and times of planting and harvesting of crops.
From tomorrow onward, the length of daylight will start increasing slowly again! For those of you who love summer, see this day as the start of the road to summer.
🇲🇹 Illum huwa l-ewwel jum tax-xitwa. Il-bidu astronomiku ta’ staġun huwa bbażat skont il-pożizzjoni tad-Dinja madwar ix-Xemx. Il-bidu ta’ kull immarkat b’solstizju (ix-xitwa u s-sajf) jew ekwinozju (ir-rebbiegħa u l-ħarifa). Solstizju jseħħ meta x-Xemx tilħaq l-aktar punt imġenneb lejn in-nofsinhar jew it-tramuntana, filwaqt li fl-ekwinozju jimmarka l-punt ta’ meta x-Xemx tgħaddi minn fuq l-ekwatur.
Is-solstizju tax-xitwa ta’ l-Emisfera ta’ Fuq jseħħ meta ċ-Ċirku ta’ l-Artiku (North Pole) ikun fl-aktar punt imġenneb mix-Xemx. Il-jum tas-solstizju tax-xitwa ta’ l-Emisfera ta’ Fuq huwa l-jum bl-anqas dawl u l-aktar dlam għalina. Ix-xemx illum telgħet fis-07:08 u se tinżel fil-16:51. Dan ifisser 9 siegħat, 43 minuta u 19 sekonda ta’ dawl. Ix-xemx tkun fl-aktar punt baxx tas-sema illum. Fiċ-Ċirku ta’ l-Artiku (North Pole) illum ikun hemm dlam kontinwu. Minn naħa l-oħra ċ-Ċirku ta’ l-Antartika (South Pole) igawdi minn dawl kontinwu. Is-solstizju tax-xitwa jimmarka l-bidu ta’ l-istaġun tax-xitwa. Minħabba snin biżestili (leap years), id-dati ta’ l-ekwinozji u solstizji tvarja minn jum sa tnejn, u b’hekk id-dati tal-bidu ta’ l-istaġuni ma jkunux dejjem il-21. Din is-sena x-xitwa tibda illum, sewwa sew fl-10:21.
Sa minn żmien il-preistorja, is-solstizju tax-xitwa kien immarkat bħala żmien sinifikanti minn diversi kulturi, u kien iċċelebrata b’modi numerużi. Fl-ewwel jum ta’ kull staġun, ix-Xemx titla b’tali mod fit-tempji ta’ Ħaġar Qim u l-Imnajdra. Dan il-fenomenu tant huwa sistematiku u ovvju li ma jħalli l-ebda dubju li huwa wieħed intenzjonat. Fi żmien il-preistorja, l-osservazzjoni tal-moviment tal-qamar u l-kwiekeb kien jintuża bħala indikatur ta’ meta għandhom jinżergħu u jinħasdu l-uċuħ tar-raba’.
Minn għada, is-siegħat ta’ dawl jibdew jitwalu bilmod il-mod. Għal dawk li jħobbu s-sajf u jippreferu s-siegħat itwal ta’ dawl li jġib miegħu dak l-istaġun, ħarsu lejn dan il-jum bħala l-bidu ta’ dik it-triq!
📷 Għajnsielem 🎄 | Joanne Mohr Photography
