Young Winter Girl On Snow

During winter in either hemisphere, the lower altitude of the Sun in winter causes the sunlight to hit that hemisphere at an oblique angle. In regions experiencing winter, the same amount of solar radiation is spread out over a larger area. This effect is compounded by the larger distance that the light must travel through the atmosphere, allowing the atmosphere to dissipate more heat. Compared with these effects, the changes in the distance of the earth from the sun are negligible.
Exceptionally cold winters
• 1684, when the Thames was frozen solid, hosting one of many River Thames frost fairs, and the sea froze up to two miles out around the coast.