Shortly after the winter solstice, the brightest shine in the Eastern sky this holidays season will be the planet Mars.

When winter solstice takes place Dec. 21, the Earth receives the least amount of energy from the sun making it the shortest day and the longest night of the year.

Following that, daylight slowly begins to grow longer,

In the days following solstice, Mars is closest to the Earth, as it makes its roughly two-year rotation around the sun, said James Conwell, professor of physics.

“When the sun goes down around Christmas time, it will probably be the brightest thing in the Eastern sky and is going to be the best time to observe Mars for the next two years,” Conwell said.

The red planet should be visible to the naked eye, while it is positioned in the Eastern sky, into late January and mid-February.

“It’s really easy to see. It will look a bit reddish, but if you look at it through a pair of binoculars, you’ll really notice the red into it,” Conwell said. “Mars is the perfect thing to observe this year.”

Along with Mars, there are star constellations that become vibrant during the winter months.

“Orion is what we call a winter constellation,” Conwell said. “There are certain things we can see only in the winter and in the summer. Orion is the most attractive winter constellation.”

The Orion constellation can found in the southern sky, he said.

This year, winter solstice will herald not only a recognizable Mars, but is also a time of spiritual and celebratory festivities.

Observed as a cultural, seasonal, and astronomical event, interpretations of winter solstice have varied from culture to culture, many of which identify the time as a rebirth of the sun.

Solstice is astronomically seen as the beginning of winter or mid-winter during which days become longer as spring grows near.

For ancient cultures, the position of the sun was detrimental to survival and festivities were held to celebrate the sun’s reversal from ebb to flow.

Incidentally, winter solstice became the original yuletide for nature-based religions of the ancient world.

Christianity, as it gained popularity, adapted the ancient celebration into Christmas and the birth of Jesus.

“The Catholic church started to essentially take over a lot of the holidays,” Conwell said. “A lot of the major feast days of the church were centered around old pagan holidays. The church was very aware of when these holidays were.”