Overview
- In Mexico the solstice occurs on Dec. 21 at 09:04 Central Time, while Time and Date places the U.S. instant at 10:03 a.m. ET and 7:03 a.m. PT.
- The December solstice marks the Northern Hemisphere’s shortest daylight and the Sun’s lowest apparent path of the year.
- Mexico will see roughly 10 hours of daylight on average that day, with shorter spans in Tijuana and Chihuahua than in Mérida or Tuxtla Gutiérrez.
- SMN reports Cold Front No. 17 and a polar air mass delivering lows near −10°C in high terrain of Chihuahua and Durango, −5 to 0°C in other elevated regions, northerly gusts of 50–70 km/h, and rougher coastal seas in the Gulf and Isthmus.
- Meteorological winter is fixed for climate records from Dec. 1 to Feb. 28/29, which explains why wintry conditions can precede the astronomical start.