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Wednesday, December 17, 2014

This Sunday is the Winter solstice, which marks the beginning of winter. It is an astronomical phenomenon which marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year (for the Northern Hemisphere).

While it seems counterintuitive, Earth is actually closest to the sun in December, even though winter solstice is the shortest day of the year.

Winter in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres is caused by Earth's axis in that hemisphere being tilted away from the sun.



Today's Random Fact:

The largest recorded snowman ever built was in Bethel, Maine, in February 1999. The 113-foot, 7-inch snowman broke the previous record held by Yamagata, Japan, at 96 feet and 7 inches.

Bismarck, North Dakota, holds the record for the most snow angels at one time. On February 17, 2007, several schools joined forced to create 8,962 snow angels.

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Bonus Fact:

Cold winter weather dulls sexual sensations, and cooler body temperatures decrease arousal for both men and women. Interestingly, women are 30 percent more likely to orgasm if their feet are warm.