The Earth is "leaning back"; its tilt of about 23.5 degrees is away from the Sun in winter. Indeed, this is what MAKES it winter: the warming sunlight is spread over more area, so it's colder. [Shine a flashlight on a flat surface with the beam perpendicular; now move the light so the beam "grazes" the surface: see how much larger the spot becomes?]
Winter Solstice.
Earth is getting colder at that time. It does not immediately start getting warmer once the winter solstice is passed. It can be up to a month later, before it begins, so the month after a winter solstice is cold. For the summer, it is the same, in that the Earth keeps getting warmer for a time after the summer solstice, so the warmest temperatures are after the summer solstice, before the cooling process starts.
No, the winter solstice marks the beginning of winter.
That depends on whether you are in the Northern or Southern Hemisphere. If you are in the Northern, then your winter solstice is the summer solstice in the Southern Hemisphere. If you are in the Southern, then your winter solstice is the summer solstice for everyone in the Northern Hemisphere.
The winter solstice is on December 21st.
Winter Solstice.
Earth is getting colder at that time. It does not immediately start getting warmer once the winter solstice is passed. It can be up to a month later, before it begins, so the month after a winter solstice is cold. For the summer, it is the same, in that the Earth keeps getting warmer for a time after the summer solstice, so the warmest temperatures are after the summer solstice, before the cooling process starts.
The Winter Solstice
From sunrise to sunset is about nine hours and about fifteen minutes. This doesn't include the twilight before sunrise or after sunset (about thirty minutes or so on each end).
The time from sunrise to sunset at 50° latitude on the winter solstice is 8 hrs. & 4 min.
The sunrise and sunset reversal times are out of sync with the winter solstice due to the tilt of the Earth's axis. During the winter solstice, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted away from the sun, causing shorter days and longer nights. The reversal of these times happens gradually as the Earth continues its orbit around the sun, leading to earlier sunsets and later sunrises during winter.
The latest sunset varies depending on your location and time of year. It typically occurs around the summer solstice (June 20-22) in the northern hemisphere and around the winter solstice (December 20-23) in the southern hemisphere.
Days start to get longer on December 21st each year. This is the date of the Winter Solstice which is when the sun is furthest away from the Northern hemisphere. In the Southern hemisphere this date is June 21st as the seasons are reversed down under.
The time between sunrise and sunset is a little longer each day from the winter solstice (around 21 June in the southern hemisphere) until the summer solstice (around 21 December), and it's a little shorter each day from the summer solstice until the winter solstice.
No, the winter solstice marks the beginning of winter.
The Winter Solstice is actually the shortest day of the year.
After the winter solstice I believe. Which was last week.