When do the mornings get lighter? When we can expect to see lighter mornings in 2022

Here’s why many of us are still waking up to dark, gloomy mornings in the UK – and when the mornings should get lighter.
When do the mornings get lighter? When we can expect to see lighter mornings in 2022 (Image credit: Getty Images via Canva Pro)When do the mornings get lighter? When we can expect to see lighter mornings in 2022 (Image credit: Getty Images via Canva Pro)
When do the mornings get lighter? When we can expect to see lighter mornings in 2022 (Image credit: Getty Images via Canva Pro)

As we begin to take down our Christmas trees and decorations to mark the end of the festive period, the dark mornings and chilly weather unfortunately remain – making getting out of bed to work, exercise and attempts to seize the New Year quite a challenging.

And with the Met Office warning of more snow, ice and wind on the way for parts of Scotland over the next few days, many of us are hoping to see the mornings get lighter and brighter to soften the blow of Scotland’s tough winter weather.

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But when will the mornings start to get lighter in the UK? And why are some of our mornings still so dark?

Here’s what you need to know.

When do the mornings start getting lighter?

With the Winter Solstice marking the shortest day of 2021 on December 21 last year and only eight hours of sunlight in the UK, the mornings will already be getting slightly lighter – even if they still appear to be quite dark and gloomy.

After the Winter Solstice, days begin to increase in length by approximately two minutes and seven seconds every day.

This means that by January 18, and every four weeks after this date, we should see an additional hour of daylight.

Mornings during the Christmas period and into the early New Year typically tend to remain darker than usual due to the fact that December’s days do not always match up to our own version of time – which measures the days in a 24 hour period.

So it is sometimes only in early to mid January that we can see a tangible difference to our days in the form of brighter, lighter mornings.

When is the Spring Equinox 2022?

Evenings will start to get lighter as they gradually shift to become equal in length to mornings – a process which officially takes place on the Spring Equinox.

The Spring Equinox will see both mornings and evenings last for roughly 12 hours each from Sunday March 20 2022.

After this point, we will see lighter days and evenings as we approach the Summer Solstice, which falls in late June and marks the longest day and shortest night.

When do the clocks go forward in 2022?

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The clocks change twice a year in the UK to provide the country with as much natural daylight as possible.

In 2022, the clocks will go forward in the UK and move into British Summer Time on Sunday March 27.

This change sees an hour of daylight shifted from the morning to the evening.

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