Even though the day of the winter solstice is the shortest of the year, the latest sunrise and earliest sunset do not occur on this day.
Understanding a Solar Day
The time when the sun is at its highest point in the sky is called the solar noon. The time from one solar noon to the next solar noon is called a solar day.
The length of a solar day changes throughout the year because of the tilt and position of the Earth. Near the winter and summer solstices, a solar day is more than 24 hours long. Near the spring and autumnal equinoxes, it is less than 24 hours long.
The problem is that we count our days as exactly 24 hours. So, with the solar day being more than 24 hours near the winter solstice, this means solar noon will occur at a later time each day. The sun will also rise later and set later.
If the sun is setting later each day before the solstice, that means the earliest sunset has already happened.
Since the sun also rises later each day, this means the latest sunrise has yet to occur. The latest sunrise will happen a few weeks after the official start of winter.
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December 20, 2020 at 10:15PM
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Wait, What? Why The Earliest Sunset Isn't on the Winter Solstice - Spectrum News
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