When Does It Start Getting Lighter In The Evenings? - Metro

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Texting at dusk
‘Seriously, it’s like 5pm. How is it this dark?’ (Picture: Getty)

Everything’s feeling wintry, as the days seem impossibly cold, short – and devoid of all sunlight.

Wake up for work at 7am? It’s dark. Look out the window at 4pm? The sun’s gone in. Feel like heading out after 5pm? Oh, don’t bother leaving the house. It’s already pitch black outside.

Unfortunately, there’s little you can do about it – other than cosy up on the couch in front of Netflix.

The lighter mornings and lighter evenings will be back soon, though. But when?

When will it start getting lighter outside?

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After the shortest day of the year, things will start getting lighter again.

Rejoice, for this day – December 21 – has passed.

Regent Street at sunset, London, England, UK
Wouldn’t it be nice to see a sunset in the evening, not the afternoon? (Picture: Getty)

On December 21 we had the shortest day (amount of daylight) and longest night (amount of darkness) in 365 days.

Usually, this amounts to seven hours and 49 minutes of daylight in London – though this could vary depending on where you live in the UK.

This day is officially known as the Winter Solstice across the entire Northern Hemisphere.

From December 22 onwards, we experience more daylight, meaning brighter mornings and evenings that stay lighter for longer.

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It won’t be immediate, though, as things get lighter incrementally until June 21, 2022, which is the longest day of the year.

It’s called the Summer Solstice, which provides us with the most amount of daylight we’ll see in one day for the entire year.

From then on, evenings will start to get darker sooner again. And on the cycle goes.

Keep in mind that the clocks springing forward (March 27) and falling back (October 30) affect how much sunlight vs darkness we have.

Arrow MORE: Winter solstice quotes and poems to get you through the shortest day of the year

Arrow MORE: Why does it get lighter in the mornings when the clocks go back?

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