Axios

This year's winter solstice will take place Wednesday, marking the official change of seasons as much of the country braces itself for an epic winter storm set to start the next day.

Why it matters: Despite the frigid forecast, the solstice will bring some relief from November’s daylight saving time change as daylight hours will start to gradually grow again, according to the Farmers' Almanac.

Over 50 million people are on winter storm alerts as the frigid air is already slithering south of the Canadian border, closing in on virtually the entire Lower 48 east of the Rockies.

Threat level: The National Weather Service is calling the cold "life-threatening" for the areas that will be hardest hit, especially the Great Plains and Midwest.

Two people are dead and 11 are injured after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit Northern California early Tuesday, authorities said.

The latest: California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for Humboldt County Tuesday evening in response to the quake, which caused widespread power outages when it struck near the small town of Ferndale in the county at 2:34am local time, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The timing couldn't be worse: a powerful winter storm is expected to slam the heart of the country this week during the holiday season's busiest travel days.

Why it matters: The storm is expected to interfere with both passenger travel and cargo transport across a vast stretch of the U.S.