Watch back: The Winter Solstice sunrise phenomenon at Newgrange

In the Northern Hemisphere, the Winter Solstice occurs when the sun shines directly over the tropic of Capricorn.

Can I watch it online?

If you can't see the video, click here.

Last year, the Office of Public Works (OPW) announced that it would not stream the spectacle in 2022, having done so throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. Instead, TG4 broadcast live from outside the chamber on the morning, which many viewers found disappointing as they could not see the chamber illuminate.

However, the sunrise will stream live again this year from inside the passage tomb at Newgrange, the OPW confirmed.

The phenomenal event can be viewed live from 8.40am on Thursday morning, giving everyone a chance to enjoy the atmosphere at Brú na Bóinne from anywhere in the world.

What happens during sunrise at Newgrange?

Inside the megalithic chamber at Newgrange during the 2018 Winter Solstice. Picture: Ciara Wilkinson.

Newgrange, a Neolithic passage tomb that is older than the pyramids in Egypt, is located in the Boyne Valley, Co Meath. It features a 19m-long passage that leads into a chamber with three alcoves.

The passage and chamber are aligned with the rising sun on the mornings around the Winter Solstice.

Above the entrance is an opening called a roof box, through which a beam of light penetrates the roof box and travels up the length of the passage and into the chamber on the Winter Solstice.

As the sun rises higher, the beam widens and the whole chamber is illuminated for 17 minutes.

The OPW says the solar alignment of the passage tomb at Newgrange to face the rising sun on the Winter Solstice is a significant astronomical finding of global importance.

Newgrange was re-discovered by Professor Michael J O’Kelly in 1967 and analysis of high-resolution imagery taken during 2021’s research programme adds to a convincing body of evidence that the solar illumination was an intentional feature of the tomb.

What time will the sun rise?

Sunrise is at 8.41am on Thursday, December 21.

Can the public attend the tomb?

An aerial view of Newgrange. Picture: Copter View Ireland

Only if you're a lucky ticket holder.

Since 2000, the Office of Public Works has operated a lottery draw for a place in the chamber to witness the Winter Solstice each year, open to visitors to the tomb during the year.

Typically, demand for the event vastly outstrips supply and the lottery was deemed to be the fairest way to allocate tickets.

If you'd like to go next year, make a note in your diary - the lottery takes place at the end of September each year.

Does it only happen on one morning every year?

No. While the Solstice peaks on December 21, the chamber is illuminated by the rising sun for a few days around that date. The phenomenon is available to view on several mornings during this period.