According to the data published on the "timeanddate.com" portal, solar winter will last until February 4. During this three-month period, there will be less than nine hours of daylight per day in Latvia.
Just writing these words makes us feel a little more depressed than we did yesterday.
The shortest day of all will be December 22, when the time interval between sunrise at 09:00 and sunset at 15.43 will be only six hours and 43 minutes.
45 days after the winter solstice – on February 5 – the solar spring will begin, which will last until May 6. During this period, the length of the day will increase from less than nine hours to less than 16 hours.
Seasons can be divided in different ways. Astronomical autumn this year began on September 23 and will end on December 22, when the winter solstice will occur. Astronomical winter will last until the vernal equinox on March 20.
On the other hand, meteorological winter begins when the daily average air temperature is below zero for at least five days in a row. In Alūksne in norhern Latvia, already on October 25-29, the average air temperature was negative and meteorological winter set in – three weeks earlier than the norm.
Forecasters predict that meteorological autumn will continue in other parts of the country at least until mid-November. Last year, the meteorological winter in Latvia started on November 17.
According to the data of the European Center for medium-term Weather Forecasts, both November and December are expected to be warmer and wetter than average this year.
