Winter Solstice is an astronomical phenomenon in which the North Pole is tilted furthest from the sun leading to the day becoming the shortest day of the year. Read on to find out more about winter solstice in 2014.

When Is Winter Solstice In 2014?

According to a report by Independent, the date of this phenomenon is not fixed. Winter solstice happens in the Southern Hemisphere in the month of June and in the Northern Hemisphere in December. In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice doesn't always happens on Dec. 21. Next year, it is slated to happen in the wee hours of Dec. 22. In 2014, winter solstice is on Dec. 21, 2014.

Apart from the date, the hour also varies, next year's solstice might occur at 4:38 A.M. while last year, it occurred at 5:11 P.M.

What Is Winter Solstice?

Winter solstice is termed as the shortest day of the year. It happens when the North Pole is tilted furthest from the sun and sun is lowest in terms of its maximum height (daily) in the sky.

BBC noted that for commuters, this phenomenon means leaving their homes and coming back in the darkness. The mornings will get darker after solstice. The reason is that a solar day is not exactly 24 hours.

"In fact, it is 24 hours only four times a year, and never in December," astronomer Stephen Hurley of The Science Geek stated (via BBC).

"It is at its shortest around 23 hours 59 minutes and 30 seconds, in early September, and at its longest around 24 hours 30 seconds in December," the astronomer added.

The sun lags behind our clocks for some part of the year while another time it moves ahead. Pagans and druids celebrate solstice as the rebirth of the sun. Many people come together at Stonehenge, Somerset, U.K. to celebrate this phenomenon.

Revellers dance as they celebrate the winter solstice at Stonehenge in Amesbury, southern England December 21, 2013
Revellers dance as they celebrate the winter solstice at Stonehenge in Amesbury, southern England December 21, 2013. REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS/Kieran Doherty
Revellers pray as they celebrate the winter solstice at Stonehenge in Amesbury, southern England December 21, 2013
Revellers pray as they celebrate the winter solstice at Stonehenge in Amesbury, southern England December 21, 2013. REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS/Kieran Doherty
Druids and revellers sing incantations as they celebrate the winter solstice at Stonehenge in Amesbury, southern England December 21, 2013.
Druids and revellers sing incantations as they celebrate the winter solstice at Stonehenge in Amesbury, southern England December 21, 2013. REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS/Kieran Doherty
Mothers from a folkloric group hold their children as they accompany performers during a ritual dance known as quottinkuquot during celebrations of the indigenous New Year in Valparaiso city, June 21, 2014.
Mothers from a folkloric group hold their children as they accompany performers during a ritual dance known as "tinku" during celebrations of the indigenous New Year in Valparaiso city, June 21, 2014. From June 21 to June 24, the indigenous people celebrate the Winter Solstice and the renewing of the earth and its inhabitants, in a ceremony referred to as "We Tripantu". REUTERS/Eliseo Fernandez REUTERS/Eliseo Fernandez
Mothers from a folkloric group hold their children as they accompany performers during a ritual dance known as quottinkuquot during celebrations of the indigenous New Year in Valparaiso city, June 21, 2014.
Mothers from a folkloric group hold their children as they accompany performers during a ritual dance known as "tinku" during celebrations of the indigenous New Year in Valparaiso city, June 21, 2014. From June 21 to June 24, the indigenous people celebrate the Winter Solstice and the renewing of the earth and its inhabitants, in a ceremony referred to as "We Tripantu". REUTERS/Eliseo Fernandez REUTERS/Eliseo Fernandez
Members of a folkloric group perform during a ritual dance known as quottinkuquot during celebrations of the indigenous New Year in Valparaiso city, June 21, 2014.
Members of a folkloric group perform during a ritual dance known as "tinku" during celebrations of the indigenous New Year in Valparaiso city, June 21, 2014. From June 21 to June 24, the indigenous people celebrate the Winter Solstice and the renewing of the earth and its inhabitants, in a ceremony referred to as "We Tripantu". REUTERS/Eliseo Fernandez REUTERS/Eliseo Fernandez