The shortest day of 2025 will arrive on December 21, when daylight at Moscow’s latitude will last just 6 hours and 59 minutes, according to the Moscow Planetarium press service announced on December 17.
“The length of night in the Northern Hemisphere reaches its maximum while daytime is at its minimum,” explained the source. “In early December, daylight lasts approximately 7 hours and 27 minutes, but by December 21 it will have shortened to 6 hours and 59 minutes.”
The winter solstice—the moment when the Sun appears lowest in the sky—will occur at 18:03 Moscow time on December 21. After this date, daylight hours will gradually increase, with an additional 7.5 minutes by New Year’s Day.
Meanwhile, a rare astronomical event is set to take place in 2026. Scientists report that a “parade of planets” will create the “Star of Bethlehem” on Christmas Eve, coinciding with the feast of the Nativity of Christ.
Additionally, on December 16, researchers from the Laboratory of Solar Astronomy at the Institute of Space Research (IKI) of the Russian Academy of Sciences warned that magnetic storms on Earth may begin earlier than previously forecasted due to an increase in solar wind speed. They noted that past predictions had included a day’s buffer before the peak activity of a solar coronal hole, but current observations suggest this timeline could shift.
