Minor Snow (Xiaoxue 小雪): dates, pentads and meaning
Snow begins to fall in northern China, but only lightly. It does not snow in lowland Taiwan; the northeast monsoon brings damp, chilly weather to the north.
Minor Snow dates, 2026–2035
| Year | Date | Time (Taiwan, UTC+8) | Month pillar |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | November 22 | 15:23 | still Ji-Hai 己亥 month |
| 2027 | November 22 | 21:16 | still Xin-Hai 辛亥 month |
| 2028 | November 22 | 02:54 | still Gui-Hai 癸亥 month |
| 2029 | November 22 | 08:49 | still Yi-Hai 乙亥 month |
| 2030 | November 22 | 14:44 | still Ding-Hai 丁亥 month |
| 2031 | November 22 | 20:32 | still Ji-Hai 己亥 month |
| 2032 | November 22 | 02:31 | still Xin-Hai 辛亥 month |
| 2033 | November 22 | 08:16 | still Gui-Hai 癸亥 month |
| 2034 | November 22 | 14:04 | still Yi-Hai 乙亥 month |
| 2035 | November 22 | 20:03 | still Ding-Hai 丁亥 month |
Times computed by our calendar code (UTC+8); they agree with an astronomical calculation to within about a minute. Between 1901 and 2100, Minor Snow always falls on November 21–23. Subtract 8 hours for UTC.
The three pentads of Minor Snow
| Sign of the season | When | |
|---|---|---|
| First pentad | Rainbows hide away (虹藏不見) | about days 1–5 after Minor Snow |
| Second pentad | Heaven's qi rises and earth's qi sinks (天氣上升地氣下降) | about days 6–10 after Minor Snow |
| Third pentad | Everything closes up and winter sets in (閉塞而成冬) | about days 11–15 after Minor Snow |
The ancients split each solar term into three pentads (hou 候) of about five days each, and marked them by changes in birds, animals and plants: seventy-two pentads a year. These follow the standard list in Wu Cheng's Yuan-dynasty Collected Explanations of the Seventy-Two Pentads. They were observed in the Yellow River basin, so they do not always match what you see in Taiwan, let alone elsewhere. Some, like hawks turning into doves, record old beliefs rather than biology.
Minor Snow in the sky: where the Sun is
The solar terms follow the Sun along the ecliptic: one term for every 15°, and Minor Snow is the moment the Sun reaches longitude 240°. In 2027, at Minor Snow the Sun sits against the stars of Libra (drowned out by daylight, of course).
What Minor Snow means in BaZi
Minor Snow is a qi (氣), or "middle term" (中氣): it falls in the middle of the Hai month (亥), so the BaZi month pillar does not change here; it is the same Hai month before and after. Middle terms matter in the calendar for another reason: a lunar month with no middle term in it becomes the leap month.
BaZi months are not counted from the lunar new moon but from the jie terms: Start of Spring, Awakening of Insects, Pure Brightness, Start of Summer, Grain in Ear, Minor Heat, Start of Autumn, White Dew, Cold Dew, Start of Winter, Major Snow and Minor Cold each open a month. If you were born on the day of a jie term, within a few hours of it, your month pillar (and for the Start of Spring, your year pillar too) can shift by one; it depends on the exact time. See solar term boundaries, and for how the month's heavenly stem is worked out, the month pillar.
Look up the solar terms for any year
Pick a year to list the exact time of all 24 solar terms (Taiwan time, UTC+8) and the month pillar each jie term starts. Add a month and day, such as a birthday, to see which solar-term period it falls in and its month pillar. Everything is calculated in your browser.
The times come from the same calendar code our BaZi charts use; for 1901–2100 they agree with an astronomical calculation to within about a minute. If you were born within minutes of a term changing, see solar term boundaries.
The terms before and after
The previous term is Start of Winter; the next is Major Snow.
A straight word: solar terms are astronomy; luck is something else
The twenty-four solar terms divide the year by the Sun's position on the ecliptic, and their times can be computed to the second. BaZi uses them to change the year and the month; that is a rule of calculation. A solar term carries no good or bad luck of its own, and no term is a "better" one to be born in: a chart is read as a whole, by its Five Elements and Ten Gods. Everything on this site is for reference and entertainment.
Solar terms set the month; the month sets strength
Enter your birth date for a free Four Pillars chart and see your month element and the balance of your whole chart.
Minor Snow: common questions
What date is Minor Snow in 2026?
In 2026, Minor Snow falls on November 22 at 15:23 Taiwan time (UTC+8); in 2027 it is November 22 at 21:16.
Why does Minor Snow move from year to year?
A solar term is the moment the Sun reaches a set longitude, here 240°. A year is about 365.24 days, not a whole number, and leap years reset the count, so the date drifts within a few days. From 1901 to 2100, Minor Snow always falls on November 21–23.
What are the three pentads of Minor Snow?
First: Rainbows hide away (虹藏不見); second: Heaven's qi rises and earth's qi sinks (天氣上升地氣下降); third: Everything closes up and winter sets in (閉塞而成冬). They follow the standard Yuan-dynasty list.
What does Minor Snow do in a BaZi chart?
It is the middle term of the Hai month, so the month pillar does not change. BaZi changes months only at the jie terms.