First Day of Winter 2026

Southern Hemisphere

South of the equator the seasons are reversed, in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina alike. In Sydney the December solstice occurs on Tuesday, December 22, 2026 at 7:50 AM AEDT. Australia's Bureau of Meteorology uses meteorological seasons, so in Australia summer is usually counted from December 1.

Why the first day of winter changes date

The calendar year has 365 or 366 days, but the tropical year — the time from one December solstice to the next — averages about 365.242 days, roughly 5 hours 49 minutes longer than a common year. So the December solstice comes about six hours later on the clock each year, and every leap day pulls it back by about 18 hours. Leap years therefore keep it within a two- or three-day window instead of drifting through the calendar. The Gregorian rule that skips leap days in century years not divisible by 400 (1900, 2100) keeps the window from creeping earlier over the centuries.

Change in clock time from one year to the next:

• 2025 → 2026: +5 h 47 min
• 2026 → 2027: +5 h 52 min
• 2027 → 2028: −18 h 22 min (leap year)

The year-to-year change is not exactly 5 h 49 min because the Moon and planets slightly perturb Earth's orbit.

The Sun and daylight on the December solstice

• The Sun reaches its southernmost point and stands directly overhead at local noon on the Tropic of Capricorn (about 23.4°S).
• It is the shortest day and longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, and the longest day in the Southern Hemisphere. North of the Arctic Circle (about 66.5°N) the Sun does not rise at all; south of the Antarctic Circle it does not set.
• At mid-northern latitudes the earliest sunset of the year comes in early December and the latest sunrise in early January, not on the solstice itself.