IRNA – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif in a message wished for establishing peace and empathy around the globe.

His Twitter message was released on Friday on the occasion of Yalda ceremony, winter solstice.

“Warmest wishes to my fellow Iranians and all others across the world who are gathering with loved ones tonight to celebrate #Yalda—the Winter Solstice. May our planet soon witness the beauty of peace and empathy—and less coercion and hypocrisy, he said.

In astronomical terms, the December 21 solstice marks the end of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere and the start of winter, which will technically end on March 20, 2019. It is one of the four days when a new season starts, alongside the spring equinox, the summer solstice and the fall equinox. However, in meteorological terms, winter begins on December 1 and ends on February 28. This is because the meteorological definition takes into account annual temperature cycles.

The solstice is important because it marks the beginning of the days getting longer (a trend that will continue until the spring equinox). As such, it has been celebrated by cultures throughout human history.

The December solstice occurs far more frequently on the 21 or 22 than it does on the 20 or 23. In fact, the last December 23 solstice took place in 1903 and won't happen again until 2303. Similarly, a December 20 solstice is very rare, with the next one not set to take place until 2080.

The reason that the date of the solstices varies can be explained by the differences between the Gregorian calendar and the 'tropical year'.