The Longest Night: Do We Sleep Better on the Solstice?

There's a long night coming, literally — the winter solstice comes on Wednesday (Dec. 21), making it the shortest day and longest night of the year. "I would say that, yes, the changing day length [over the year] does influence sleep," said Brant Hasler, a sleep expert and assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh. "[It's] probably not enough to notice a day-to-day difference with regard to the winter solstice and the days before and after, but certainly in comparison to the summer solstice," Hasler told Live Science.