The shortest day has arrived: it won't get any darker from here on out.

Each day will become brighter and brighter

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On Saturday, December 21, at 12:21 PM Moscow time, the winter solstice will occur. Since this will be the day and also noon, you can step outside, look at the Sun, and honestly tell yourself: it won't dip lower than this.

The Sun's ascent will be gradual. It's no coincidence – "standing". The day will increase by minutes. However, by the first days of January, you will notice that it has become a bit brighter.

We share interesting activities you can do while the daytime star is in such an unusual state.

FIND OUT YOUR GEOGRAPHICAL LATITUDE

It's a great opportunity to estimate this without GPS or any instruments, just using your hand. It may not have practical significance, but it’s quite fun.

At noon on December 21, look at the Sun. Extend your hand towards it and place your fingers as if resting them on the horizon. If the horizon is not visible, mentally draw a horizontal line from your eyes into the distance and use it as a reference.

How many fingers fit between the horizon and the Sun? Or was your hand insufficient? Then how many hands are needed? How many fingers?

Remember this simple rule: all fingers, including the thumb – 10 angular degrees. Three fingers (index, middle, and ring) – 5 degrees. By combining your fingers, determine as accurately as possible the angular height of the Sun above the horizon at noon. Noon is considered the time between 12 PM and 1 PM, so special precision is not required.

Now you just need to perform a simple mathematical operation:

66.5 degrees minus (the angular height of the Sun you measured) = your geographical latitude.

Magic? Yes, the error will likely be significant. But you measured it with your finger!

How does it work? On the day of the solstice, the Sun is located BELOW the celestial equator at a known angular distance of 23.5 degrees. The angular height of the equator above the horizon is 90 degrees minus your geographical latitude. We create an equation at a third-grade level, and the solution is more advanced.

WHERE HAS THE SUN NOT RISEN?

You have already measured the angular height of the Sun above the horizon at noon. Without making any further measurements, you can find out where today the Sun has not risen at all.

Simply multiply the angular height by 111 kilometers. For example, if you measured 5 degrees. This means that to the north of you, at a distance of 111*5= 555 kilometers, the Sun will just barely touch the southern horizon from below but will not rise above it.

By the way, this place is called the Arctic Circle. So now you know how far you are from the Arctic Circle.

How does it work? The length of one degree of latitude on Earth is 111 kilometers. As you move north, with each degree of latitude, you "lower" the Sun by 1 degree in the sky. When you have crossed enough degrees of latitude, the Sun's height will reach the horizon. Now you just need to convert degrees into kilometers.

ADMIRE THE GIGANTIC SUN

The Sun appears enormous, especially through clouds or haze. Yes, partly it’s an illusion of a nearby horizon. The Sun, Moon, and even the figures of constellations at the horizon are perceived by our brains as much larger than they actually are.

However, the Sun is currently much closer to Earth than in the summer. The Earth orbits in an ellipse. In summer, we move away from the Sun, while in winter, we get closer. We will be closest in the first days of January. If the Sun didn’t blind our eyes, we would clearly see how small it appears in summer and how large it seems in winter.

Looking directly at the Sun is definitely not advisable. Especially not through binoculars or a telescope. Not even through the viewfinder of a camera! The best way to glimpse it is through thick clouds (but only with the naked eye!), or at sunset (again, only briefly and with the naked eye!). Remember, it’s easy to go blind from looking at the Sun, even in winter. And this is irreversible.

LOOK AT VENUS

About half an hour after the Sun sets, a very bright white star will appear roughly where the Sun was, not too high in the sky. This is the planet Venus.

Venus is closer to the Sun than we are, and therefore we see its orbit from a side perspective. This explains why Venus never strays too far from the Sun in the sky. Currently, it is the evening star, appearing after sunset, and soon it will set itself. At other times, it becomes the morning star, rising just before the Sun.

When Venus is visible in the evening, many people see it (the morning one is only seen by those who wake up early). Venus is incredibly bright. So much so that it can create some optical illusions.

It seems to move constantly, unlike other stars. In reality, our vision shifts between day and night modes, seeing it with both cones and rods. People look at Venus and wonder, what is that? A UFO? The evening visibility in December, when the weather is poor, can cause Venus to flicker once or twice, often raising questions. People post on social media and reach out to the media. Not just ordinary folks, either. There have been instances of military personnel (not in Russia, of course) scrambling planes to pursue a "hostile object".

Most likely, the mysterious "drones" in the U.S. that you’ve probably heard about were Venus.

Enjoy the sight of this mysterious planet. If it’s dark around you, check if your hand casts a shadow from Venus – it should! Marvel at how, just a moment ago white, Venus reddens at the horizon. This is the effect of the Earth’s atmosphere.

LISTEN TO DISTANT RADIO STATIONS

Long winter nights are a perfect time to dust off your old, dusty medium-wave receiver and immerse yourself in the forgotten, enchanting world of radio waves.

During the day, medium waves can travel about a hundred kilometers. In Russia, there has been no medium-wave broadcasting for about 15 years, so you won’t hear anything during the day.

Nighttime is a different story. At night, a sort of mirror appears high above our heads. It reflects radio waves from distant lands. Your receiver can then access the entire world. If, as a teenager, you enjoyed tuning into the airwaves, relishing the crackles, whistles, and voices in foreign languages, dreaming of traveling the world someday – why not rekindle that feeling?

Here’s how it works. Above us is the ionosphere, a layer of charged particles. In fact, there are several layers. During the day, the lower layer tends to absorb radio waves rather than reflect them. You don’t hear distant stations (and as mentioned, there are none nearby). Once the Sun sets, this layer dissipates, revealing a higher, more reflective layer.

The effect is weak in summer. Nights are short, and the lower layer doesn’t have time to break down. Winter is a different story.