The shortest day of 2020 is just around the corner, with the winter solstice taking place in Australia in one week's time.

The winter solstice will occur at 7:44am AEST on Sunday, June 21st this year, marking the moment Earth's southern hemisphere reaches its furthest tilt away from the sun.

Image: Himawari-8 satellite image showing sunset over Australia on Friday, June 12th 2020, just over one week away from the winter solstice.

From the perspective of everyone in Australia at the time of the winter solstice, the sun will appear at its northernmost point in our sky for the year.

The angle of the Earth relative to the sun at the winter solstice means that this date is the shortest day of the year in the southern hemisphere. Consequently, the shortest day is also surrounded by the year's two longest nights.

After the winter solstice, days will start getting longer and nights will become shorter. This trend will continue until the summer solstice occurs in late December, marking the longest day of 2020 in Australia.

While winter in Australia technically begins at the start of June from a meteorological perspective, some parts of the world recognise the two solstices as the beginning of winter and summer.

But after next Sunday, it will be winter in Australia no matter which way you look at it.