Winter 2021

Winter 2021 starts on Tuesday, December 21, 2021 (in 87 days) and ends on Sunday, March 20th 2022 (in 176 days).  Calendar for 2021

Please note: The dates given on this page are based on Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which for practical purposes is equivalent to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). While Winter starts and ends at the same moment in time all over the Northern Hemisphere, the date and local time differ from location to location depending on a location's time zone. For more details see the explanations below.

Winter is one of the four seasons that make up the year. It is the coldest time of the year and falls between autumn (fall) and spring, the intervening periods that lead from and to summer, the warmest time of the year.

Astronomical winter vs. meteorological winter

There are various ways to define the start and end dates of winter. The two most commonly used ones are based on the astronomical calendar and the meteorological calendar. Astronomical and meteorological winter start and end on different dates.

Astronomical winter

In the astronomical calendar the start and end dates of winter are based on the changing position of Earth in relation to the sun and the resulting solar events of equinoxes and solstices. In the Northern Hemisphere autumn ends and winter starts at the moment of the December solstice, which occurs every year between December 20 and December 23. Winter ends and spring starts at the moment of the March equinox, which occurs every year between March 19 and March 21. In the Southern Hemisphere winter lasts from the June solstice (June 20 to 22) to the September equinox (September 21 to 24).

The start and end dates for winter given on this page are the dates of astronomical winter in the Northern Hemisphere and are based on Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which for practical purposes is equivalent to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT - the time zone of the United Kingdom). While winter starts and ends at the same moment in time all over the Northern Hemisphere, the date and local time differ from place to place depending on the year and a location's time zone. For locations that are ahead of UTC (further east) it may fall on the day after, and for locations that are behind UTC (further west) it may fall on the day before. To find out the exact date and time of winter 2021 in your area use this seasons calculator.

Meteorological winter

Meteorologists, on the other hand, define seasons based on climatic conditions and the annual temperature cycle. It is important for them to be able to compare the same period of time in different years. The length of the astronomical seasons varies between 89 and 93 days, while the length of the meteorological seasons is less variable and is fixed at 90 days for winter in a non-leap year (91 days in a leap year), 92 days for spring and summer, and 91 days for autumn. While the exact definition of a season's timing and length can differ in different areas based on local conditions, in most of the Northern Hemisphere meteorological winter is generally defined as the three months of December, January and February, with the season starting on December 1 and ending on February 28 (29 in a leap year).

There is no "official rule" which definition of winter to use, and different countries adhere to different conventions. Most of North America and Europe use astronomical winter, while Australia and New Zealand use meteorological winter (however, as these countries are in the Southern Hemisphere, the seasons are opposed and winter there lasts from June to August). In other cultures, eg. in the traditional Chinese calendar and in Celtic traditions, the December solstice is considered to be roughly the middle of winter.

Further reading:

• Winter on Wikipedia
• Seasons in general on Wikipedia

Comparison table: meteorological spring vs. astronomical spring

Dates shown apply to the Northern Hemisphere and are based on UTC (GMT)

Sea­son	Start		End
	Mete­oro­logi­cal	Astro­nomi­cal	Mete­oro­logi­cal	Astro­nomi­cal
Spring	March 1	March 19 to 21 Spring equi­nox (vernal equi­nox, March equi­nox)	May 31	June 20 to 22 Summer sols­tice (June sols­tice)
Sum­mer	June 1	June 20 to 22 Summer solstice (June solstice)	August 31	Septem­ber 21 to 24 Autumn equi­nox (Fall equi­nox, Septem­ber equi­nox)
Au­tumn (Fall)	Sep­tem­ber 1	Septem­ber 21 to 24 Autumn equi­nox (Fall equi­nox, Septem­ber equi­nox)	Novem­ber 30	Decem­ber 20 to 23 Winter sols­tice (Decem­ber sols­tice)
Winter	Decem­ber 1	Decem­ber 20 to 23 Winter sols­tice (De­cem­ber sols­tice)	February 28 (29)	March 19 to 21 Spring equi­nox (vernal equi­nox, March equi­nox)

Winter 2022 starts on Wednesday, December 21, 2022 (in 452 days) and ends on Monday, March 20th 2023 (in 541 days).  Calendar for 2022

US federal holidays
New Year's Day
Martin Luther King Day (MLK Day)
Presidents' Day
    (Washington's Birthday)
Memorial Day
Juneteenth
Independence Day (4th of July)
Labor Day
Columbus Day
Veterans Day
Thanksgiving Day
Christmas Day

Canadian holidays
Canadian Thanksgiving

Australian holidays
ANZAC Day

The seasons
Spring
Vernal equinox (spring equinox,
March equinox)
Summer
Summer solstice (June solstice)
Autumn / Fall
Autumn equinox (fall equinox,
September equinox)
Winter
Winter solstice (December solstice)

Christian (and related)
Advent
Advent Sunday
All Hallows' Eve
All Hallows' Day
All Saints' Day
All Souls' Day
Ascension Day
Ash Wednesday
Black Saturday
Boxing Day
Bright Saturday
Bright Week
Candlemas
Christmas
Christmas Day
Christmas Eve
Christmastide
Corpus Christi
Easter
Easter Day
Easter Eve
Easter Friday
Easter Monday
Easter Tuesday
Easter Saturday
Easter Sunday
Eastertide
Easter Week
Easter Weekend
Epiphany
Epiphany Eve
Fat Tuesday
First day of Lent
Good Friday
Halloween
Holy Friday
Holy Saturday
Holy Thursday
Holy Week
Jesus' Birthday
Lazarus Saturday
Lent
Mardi Gras
Maundy Thursday
Orthodox Easter
Palm Sunday
Pancake Day
Pancake Tuesday
Pascha
Pentecost
Pentecost Sunday
Pentecost Monday
Shrove Monday
Shrove Tuesday
St. Andrew's Day
St. David's Day
St. George's Day
St. Patrick's Day
St. Stephen's Day
Theophany
Three Kings Day
Trinity Sunday
Twelve Days of Christmas
Twelfth Night
Whit Sunday
Whit Monday

Other days
April Fools Day
Armed Forces Day
Black Friday
Buy Nothing Day
Cinco de Mayo
Constitution Day
Cyber Monday
Daylight Saving Time
Day of the Dead
Día de los Muertos
Earth Day
Election Day
Father's Day
Flag Day
Giving Tuesday
Grandparents' Day
Groundhog Day
Halloween
Indigenous Peoples' Day
International Women's Day
Mother's Day
Native American Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Eve
Panic Saturday (Super Saturday)
Parents' Day
Star Wars Day
Samhain
Small Business Saturday
Summer time
Super Saturday (Panic Saturday)
Teacher Appreciation Day
Teacher Appreciation Week
Valentine's Day
World Environment Day
World Teachers' Day

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