AMMAN — The President of the
Jordanian Astronomical Society (JAS), Ammar Al-Sakaji, stated that the winter solstice is set
to occur at 6:27a.m., local time, on Friday, December 22.
اضافة اعلان
In a press statement on Sunday, he
explained that at this particular moment, the Earth's axis of rotation is at
its farthest point from the sun, marking the astronomical onset of winter,
which extends for about 90 days. During this time, daylight hours will be the
shortest in the northern hemisphere and the longest in the southern hemisphere,
Al-Mamlaka TV reported.
Sakaji pointed out that on Friday, the
duration of daylight in Jordan is expected to be around 10 hours and 3 minutes,
with the sun positioned in the constellation of Capricorn. He clarified that
the seasons are astronomically determined through the vernal and autumnal
equinoxes, as well as the summer and winter solstices, all of which are linked
to the Earth's rotational movements and the tilt of its axis around the sun.
Continuing, he highlighted that on Friday,
the sun is anticipated to rise at 7:32a.m. and set at 5:36p.m. The initial rays
of sunlight will disperse in the atmosphere, creating astronomical twilight at
6:05a.m.. Subsequently, nautical twilight, distinguishing the Earth from the
sky, will occur at 6:35 am, followed by civil twilight at 7:05a.m., during
which the Earth's features become easily discernible.
Sakaji added that during the winter
solstice, the sun reaches its lowest point in the sky towards the south,
particularly around noon at 12:34p.m., with an elevation angle of 34.6 degrees
and an azimuth angle of 180 degrees, according to
Jordan's time and coordinates.
Emphasizing that the winter solstice is not
an entire day but rather a moment at 6:27a.m. on Friday, local time, he noted
that traditionally, this event is considered the beginning of the
"astronomical winter" or the commencement of the “40 days of
winter," depending on various cultural interpretations.
Each year on this day, the
JAS conducts
measurements of the time of sunrise and sunset, as well as angles, for
scientific and documentary purposes from different locations across Jordan.
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