Winter is one of the four seasons of temperate zones. In both hemispheres, winter begins on the day of the year which has fewest hours of daylight, "winter solstice", and ends on the following equinox. In the Northern Hemisphere, depending on the year, it begins between December 20 and 23 and ends on March 20 or 21. In the Southern Hemisphere, depending on the year, it begins between June 20 and 23 and ends on September 22 or 23. From a meteorological perspective, winter is the season with the shortest days and the lowest average temperatures. It has colder weather and, especially in the higher latitudes or altitudes, snow and ice. The coldest average temperatures of the season are typically experienced in January in the Northern Hemisphere and in July in the Southern Hemisphere.
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Winter is one of the four seasons of temperate zones. In both hemispheres, winter begins on the day of the year which has fewest hours of daylight, "winter solstice", and ends on the following equinox. In the Northern Hemisphere, depending on the year, it begins between December 20 and 23 and ends on March 20 or 21. In the Southern Hemisphere, depending on the year, it begins between June 20 and 23 and ends on September 22 or 23. From a meteorological perspective, winter is the season with the shortest days and the lowest average temperatures. It has colder weather and, especially in the higher latitudes or altitudes, snow and ice. The coldest average temperatures of the season are typically experienced in January in the Northern Hemisphere and in July in the Southern Hemisphere.
Aspects
Meteorology
Accumulations of snow and ice are mostly associated with winter in the Northern Hemisphere, due to the large land masses there. In the Southern Hemisphere, the more maritime climate and the relative lack of land south of 40°S makes the winters milder; thus, snow and ice are less common in inhabited regions of the Southern Hemisphere. In this region, snow occurs every year in elevated regions such as the Andes, the Great Dividing Range in Australia, and the mountains of New Zealand, and also occurs in the southerly Patagonia region of South America. Snow occurs year-round in Antarctica.
Period
File:EbniterStr04.JPG|thumb|260px|The road from Dornbirn, Austria to the mountain village of Ebnit in winter. In Celtic nations such as Ireland (using the Irish calendar) and in Scandinavia, the winter solstice is traditionally considered as midwinter, with the winter season beginning November 1, on All Hallows, or Samhain. Winter ends and spring begins on Imbolc, or Candlemas, which is February 1 or February 2. This system of seasons is based on the length of days exclusively. (The three-month period of the shortest days and weakest solar radiation occurs during November, December, and January in the Northern Hemisphere and May through July in the Southern Hemisphere.)
Also, many mainland European countries tend to recognize Martinmas, St. Martin's day (November 11), as the first calendar day of winter. The day falls at midpoint between the old Julian equinox and solstice dates. Also, Valentine's Day (February 14) is recognized by some countries as heralding the first rites of spring, such as flowers blooming.
In Chinese astronomy and other East Asian calendars, winter is taken to commence on or around November 7, with the Jiéqì (known as 立冬 lì dōng—literally, "establishment of winter").
The three-month period associated with the coldest average temperatures typically begins somewhere in late November or early December in the Northern Hemisphere and lasts through late February or early March. This "thermological winter" is earlier than the solstice definition but later than the daylight (Celtic) definition. Depending on seasonal lag, this period will vary among climatic regions.
