Illumination of Earth by Sun on the day of winter solstice on northern hemisphere. Image by Przemyslaw "Blueshade" Idzkiewicz. A view to eastern-hemisphere showing noon in Central European time zone (ignoring DST) on the day of winter solstice (on northern hemisphere - this is summer solstice on southern hemisphere). From https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Earth-lighting-winter-solstice_EN.png#globalusage
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Dec. 21 Solstice Meditation and Conversation

ByMichelle Y. Merrill, Ph.D.

As you’ll note on the Novasutras calendar, I’m hosting a livestream on our YouTube channel from 16:00-17:00 UTC (8am – 9am PST). We will connect on YouTube to meditate together, saying farewell to what we wish to leave behind in the old year, and setting our intentions for the emergence of the coming year.

Thursday, December 21, 2017 at 16:28 UTC is the specific moment when the sun is directly over the Tropic of Capricorn (latitude 23° 30? South – see illustration below). In the northern hemisphere, it is the shortest day of the year. The solstice is typically associated with festivals (such as Yule) marking the start of the winter season, the return of the sun, and the ending of one year as the next year begins.

Winter Solstice.

Michelle Y. Merrill, Ph.D., is an expert in international sustainability, systems and complexity, teaching and learning, biologically-inspired design, anthropology and ecology. Over decades of research, she has worked in the US, Asia and Africa studying rainforest primates and Higher Education for Sustainability. She is a published author, a respected educator and international speaker, and the founder of Novasutras. She earned her doctorate from Duke University in 2004. 

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