Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate zones. It occurs between autumn and spring each year. Winter is caused by the axis of the Earth in that hemisphere being oriented away from the Sun. Different cultures define different dates as the start of winter, and some use a definition based on weather.

When it is winter in the Northern Hemisphere, it is summer in the Southern Hemisphere, and vice versa. In many regions, winter is associated with snow and freezing temperatures. The moment of winter solstice is when the Sun’s elevation with respect to the North or South Pole is at its most negative value. That is, the Sun is at its farthest below the horizon as measured from the pole. The day on which this occurs has the shortest day and the longest night, with day length increasing and night length decreasing as the season progresses after the solstice. (Source: Wikipedia)

The image on the homepage, “happy winter” by suzy_yes is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.