Microseason 71 of 72 · December 21–25
Solstice — the sun begins return
A five-day window of the year, read through nine North American climate regions.
Same week, nine climates
A microseason names a five-day window of the solar year. What that window actually looks like on the ground depends on where you are. Below, the same calendar window read through each of nine North American climate regions.
- NENortheast Continental
Solstice — the sun begins return
Winter solstice — the year's longest night, then light returns.
- SESoutheast Subtropical
The Sun Begins its Return
Winter solstice marks the turning point. Days now lengthen imperceptibly. The solar noon sun traces its lowest arc; shadows stretch longest; cold persists but the year's pivot is here.
- PNWPacific Northwest
The sun turns at solstice
Winter solstice: shortest day, longest night. Sunrise 7:54 AM, sunset 4:17 PM. Turnaround point. Sun angle lowest. Temperatures often mild after.
- CACalifornia Mediterranean
Winter solstice: the sun turns
Shortest day passes; weak southern sun climbs barely above the horizon by noon; rainy season enters deepest phase.
- MWMountain West
Winter solstice — the sun returns
At the solstice, the sun begins its slow climb northward. Though the deepest cold still lies ahead, light itself turns toward spring.
- MPPlains Continental
Solstice — sun begins return
Winter solstice: the year's darkest day, the sun's lowest arc. By solstice, the return begins. Cold persists, but light slowly wins.
- SWSouthwest Desert
The sun turns north
After solstice, daylight minutes slowly increase. Winter rains green the landscape briefly. Desert plants sense returning light.
- TRTropical / Sub-Tropical
Solstice—renewal in stillness
Winter solstice marks the year's turning. Days begin to lengthen. Driest period peaks. Holidays fill harbors and beaches.
- AKAlaska Subarctic
The sun returns, barely perceptible
Winter solstice passes. Days begin to lengthen, but the change is imperceptible for weeks. Darkness still dominates.
About the 72-microseason calendar
A microseason is a five-day window of the solar year — long enough to notice something change, short enough that the change is specific. The year holds seventy-two of them, six per month, ordered by what the natural world is doing rather than what the clock says. Almanac calendars like this are an old American habit, kept by farmers, gardeners, and birders for centuries; Weather Story collects them into a single reference.
Each microseason is read through nine North American climate regions. The phenological events that mark a five-day window vary with ecology — the strawberries that open in the Northeast might coincide with the first magnolias dropping in the Southeast and the salmonberry blossoms unfurling in the Pacific Northwest. Same week, nine ecologies, nine readings.