How does your winter solstice weather compare to previous years?

Every year, the winter solstice marks the longest night of the year and the shortest day, and it also marks the official start of winter. This year the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere occurs on December 21, 11:48 P.M. EST.

No two winters are exactly the same. According to the State Climate Office of North Carolina's Holiday Climatology for the Southeast, the following extremes on the winter solstice have been documented:

North Carolina

• Warmest Winter Solstice occurred on December 22, 1931 at Elizabeth City (312719)
• Max Temp: 76°F
• Min Temp: 70°F
• Coldest Winter Solstice occurred on December 22, 1935 at Mt Mitchell (315921)
• Max Temp: 15°F
• Min Temp: -9°F
• Highest Precipitation Amount: 4.12 inches on December 22, 1918 at Highlands (314055)

 South Carolina

• Warmest Winter Solstice occurred on December 22, 1926 at Georgetown 2 E (383468)
• Max Temp: 82°F
• Min Temp: 60°F
• Coldest Winter Solstice occurred on December 21, 1985 at Caesars Head (381256)
• Max Temp: 27°F
• Min Temp: 10°F
• Highest Precipitation Amount: 3.01 inches on December 22, 1918 at Centenary (381495)

The Holiday Climatology page also provides the warmest, coldest, and wettest winter solstices documented at each weather station in North and South Carolina. Let us know how your temperature and precipitation measurements for the winter solstice compare to the records documented at weather station closest to your home in the comments below or in your weekly condition monitoring report.