TUNE IN: Newgrange's Winter Solstice light show to be livestreamed around the world

The Winter Solstice phenomenon at Newgrange in Co Meath will, once again, be available to watch anywhere in the world via livestream on Sunday, December 21.

Ireland's Office of Public Works (OPW) and National Monuments Services (NMS) of the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage have arranged a livestream of the 2025 Winter Solstice.

On Sunday, December 21, the 2025 Winter Solstice livestream will be available on YouTube, the OPW's website, HeritageIreland.ie, as well as the RTÉ Player.

RTÉ will also be broadcasting live from Newgrange on Sunday, beginning at 8:40 am Irish time.

You can watch the 2025 Winter Solstice livestream from Newgrange here on Sunday, December 21:

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The 2025 Winter Solstice livestream will be accompanied by a narration that describes the event in detail, while specialists Dr. Clare Tuffy and Dr. Frank Prendergast will guide viewers through the spectacular event, providing unique insights and perspectives on the significance of the Winter Solstice.

This year, the OPW is inviting viewers to host coffee mornings with friends and family to experience the beauty and wonder of the Winter Solstice in high definition without having to leave their homes.

Viewers are encouraged to share their experiences on our social media platforms using the hashtags #ShareTheSolstice and #NewgrangeSolstice.

What is Newgrange?

Newgrange is a prehistoric monument built by Stone Age farmers in the Boyne Valley, Co Meath. Along with nearby sites Knowth and Dowth, it is among the most important Neolithic sites in the world.

Dating back to 3200 BC, Newgrange predates Stonehenge and the Pyramids of Giza.

The structure itself lay hidden beneath the earth for over 5,000 years due to mound slippage, which effectively preserved it, until its rediscovery in the late 17th century, when men looking for building stone came across what they thought was a cave.

Restored to its former glory, the Newgrange mound is a solid structure that’s 250 feet across and 40 feet high, covering one acre of land. A tribute to its builders, the roof has remained essentially intact and waterproof for over 5,000 years.

Ancient carvings can be seen on many of the massive, kidney-shaped mound’s curbstones, including the triple-spiral design synonymous with Newgrange.

Local expert Michael Fox said in 2015: “Archaeologists have classified Newgrange as a passage tomb, but it is more than that. ‘Ancient temple’ is a more fitting label: a place of astronomical, spiritual, and ceremonial importance.”

The 'roof box' at Newgrange

Irish archaeologist MJ O’Kelly carried out excavations at Newgrange from 1962 to 1975 and became known as the father of “New Archaeology." It was O’Kelly who produced the first scientific dates for Newgrange and rediscovered the 'roof box,' which guides the light into the chamber.

On December 21, 1967, O'Kelly was the first person to see the Winter Solstice display at Newgrange in thousands of years.

O’Kelly’s daughter told the BBC, “He found the roof box when uncovering the roof chamber but wondered about its purpose…My mother, who worked closely with him, suggested that it might be connected with the winter solstice. And that was how he discovered it."

In his notes, O’Kelly recorded: “The effect is very dramatic as the direct light of the sun brightens and cast a glow of light all over the chamber. I can see parts of the roof and a reflected light shines right back into the back of the end chamber.”

His daughter, who experienced the solstice at Newgrange the following year, told the BBC, “Suddenly this shaft of light came into the chamber and hit the back wall. I remember being quietly moved – it was as if someone were speaking to you from thousands of years ago. I still see it like a picture before my inner eye – it was a golden light."

What happens on the Winter Solstice at Newgrange?

The Winter Solstice is an astronomical phenomenon that marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year. In the Northern Hemisphere, the Winter Solstice occurs on December 21 or 22, when the sun shines directly over the tropic of Capricorn.

At sunrise on the shortest day of the year, for 17 minutes, direct sunlight can enter the Newgrange monument, not through the doorway, but through the 'roof box,' the specially contrived small opening above the entrance, to illuminate the chamber.

According to the OPW, the light enters about four minutes after sunrise, but calculations based on the precession of the Earth show that 5,000 years ago, first light would have entered exactly at sunrise. That makes the solar alignment at Newgrange very precise compared to similar phenomena at other passage graves in England and Scotland.

It is a marvel of early astronomy that never fails to amaze.

Seeing the Winter Solstice at Newgrange in person

Access to the chamber inside Newgrange for sunrise during the Winter Solstice is restricted to Solstice Lottery Draw Winners. This year marked the first time that people could apply online; the OPW said it received more than 16,000 entries.

Some of the 2025 winners hailed from Belfast, Cork, Limerick, and Meath, and as far as California, France, the Netherlands, New York, and Taiwan. The winners, along with a guest, will have access to the Chamber on one of the days between December 19 and December 23 this year.

The lottery for the 2026 Winter Solstice at Newgrange is now open online here.

Those who are not lottery winners are still welcome to visit Newgrange during the Winter Solstice for an outdoor gathering, and visitors who wish to go inside afterward will be accommodated in groups.