Winter 2020

When is Winter 2020?

What is Winter?

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 23).

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). 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 2020 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.

Comparison table: astronomical winter vs. meteorological winter

Dates shown apply to the Northern Hemisphere

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

For more information see Winter on Wikipedia.

When is Winter 2021?

Dates for Winter from 2015 to 2025

The next occurrence of Winter is marked in red.

Year	Winter starts on	Winter ends on
Winter 2015	Tuesday, December 22, 2015	Sunday, March 20, 2016
Winter 2016	Wednesday, December 21, 2016	Monday, March 20, 2017
Winter 2017	Thursday, December 21, 2017	Tuesday, March 20, 2018
Winter 2018	Friday, December 21, 2018	Wednesday, March 20, 2019
Winter 2019	Sunday, December 22, 2019	Friday, March 20, 2020
Winter 2020	Monday, December 21, 2020	Saturday, March 20, 2021
Winter 2021	Tuesday, December 21, 2021	Sunday, March 20, 2022
Winter 2022	Wednesday, December 21, 2022	Monday, March 20, 2023
Winter 2023	Friday, December 22, 2023	Wednesday, March 20, 2024
Winter 2024	Saturday, December 21, 2024	Thursday, March 20, 2025
Winter 2025	Sunday, December 21, 2025	Friday, March 20, 2026
Data provided 'as is' without warranty

Dates of Winter 2020 and surrounding years as downloadable image file

Calendar templates 2020 for Word, Excel & PDF

2020 calendar as templates for Word, Excel & PDF A selection of calendar templates for 2020 in landscape and portrait orientation and with US federal holidays, suitable for a variety of applications. 2020 calendar templates for Word 2020 calendar templates for Excel 2020 calendar templates for PDF

Christian (and related) Advent Advent Sunday 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 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

US federal holidays New Year's Day Martin Luther King Day (MLK Day) Presidents' Day     (Washington's Birthday) Memorial Day Independence Day Labor Day Columbus Day Veterans Day Thanksgiving Day Christmas Day Australian holidays ANZAC Day The seasons Spring Vernal equinox (spring equinox, March equinox) Summer Summer solstice (June solstice) Autumn / Fall Autumnal equinox (fall equinox, September equinox) Winter Winter solstice (December solstice)

Other days April Fools Day Armed Forces Day Cinco de Mayo Constitution Day Daylight Saving Time Day of the Dead Día de los Muertos Earth Day Father's Day Flag Day Halloween Indigenous Peoples' Day International Women's Day Mother's Day Native American Day New Year's Day New Year's Eve Star Wars Day Samhain Summer time Teacher Appreciation Day Teacher Appreciation Week Valentine's Day World Environment Day World Teachers' Day

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