Thousands expected for Winter Solstice at Stonehenge
It's on the 22nd this year, rather than the 21st December
Thousands of people are to descend on Stonehenge on Friday morning (22/12) to celebrate Winter Solstice.
The celebrations normally occurs when the North Pole is tilted at its furthest point from the sun during its orbit, which means, for us in the Northern Hemisphere, it's the longest night and the shortest day.
But isn't Winter Solstice on 21st December? Normally it is, but as Scott Ashman, Head of Historical Properties at Stonehenge for English Heritage, explained, it's not a fixed date:
"Many people believe that winter source is always falls on the 21st of December, but actually there's a mismatch between the calendar and the solar year," he said.
"The date and time has chosen to mark sources at Stonehenge as the first sunrise following the astronomical event which does occur during the hours of darkness on the 21st of December," Scott added.
English Heritage work with the Druid and Pagan communities to achieve that.
There many theories about how Stonehenge came to be where it is today, but there's multiple concepts about the differences between Summer and Winter Solstice.
Several of those lead us to believe winter is the more significant of the pair, with Scott admitting that Winter Solstice means there's something to look forward to.
He said: "It's a case of that is the day being signified of the most darkness and the least light, and after the days do start to get lighter and I think that's something that we all look forward to after a dark and gloomy winter."
There's lots of advice for people visiting the site, as well as those travelling through the areas close-by.
National Highways have urged commuters to plan their Friday morning journeys ahead, especially on the A303, as a 40mph speed limit is being put in place between Countess and Longbarrow roundabouts, with all lay-by's between them closed.
Kathryn Wiltshire, National Highways’ South West Resilience Planner, said: “As we’ve done for previous solstice events, traffic management will be in place for safety and to keep disruption to a minimum.
“In view of a potential increase in traffic volumes for the Christmas Getaway, we advise all road users to check our traffic and travel information channels, plan their journeys and allow plenty of time.”
For those visiting Stonehenge, the car park opens at 5:15am, while the Monument Field is expected to open around 7:45am, depending on light levels.
Sunrise is anticipated for 8:10am.
As always, people are asked to respect the stones.
"It's a unique ancient prehistoric site," Scott said, adding that there are 'terms of entry' sign posted as people enter the Monument Field.
"We would ask people not to climb on the stones, not to be naked flames in and around the stone circle, and just to show general respect to each other whilst they're celebrating."
And with the weather set to be dry, Scott said: "We're hopeful for spectacular sunrise and for all the celebrations to take place."