Despite the recent resurrection of the winter season, I felt how close the spring was. Here in New Mexico, the roadrunners spin, the trees bloom and I sow lettuce seeds on my raised garden beds. So mark your calendar for March 20: The Vernal Equinox indicates the astronomical start of spring in the northern hemisphere.
While equinoxes may not get the same attention as solstices, they are a great way to observe shift periods. Let's find out the Vernal Equinox, what it is and why it happened.
What is Spring Equinox?
No doubt you notice the extension of sunlight as the winter decreases (especially since Saving Daylight begins). The Vernal Equinox marked the tipping point on longer days.
The word “Equinox” is derived from Latin words for equal and evening. The sun and night light were almost equal during the equinox period. We experience two each year – the vernal equinox in spring and the Autumnal equinox In the fall. The word “vernal” traces Latin and spring references.
The graphic service of this national era shows the tilt of the Earth, how it is driving the day and when equinox and solstices occur in the northern hemisphere.
The soil rotates on an axis (think of it like a line running from the pole to the pole) with a 23.5-degree tilt. Some parts of the planet get a more direct sun than others. That is how we get our time, and how it can be a tag in the northern hemisphere while it's winter in the Southern Hemisphere.
“The Spring Equinox is when the northern hemisphere moves from directed away from the sun (during the winter) pointed to the sun (during tag -day),” said Emily RiceAssociate Professor of Astrophysics at Macaulay Honors College of City University of New York. “The tilt is lined with Earth's orbit in just a moment.” That's when we get almost equal amounts of day and night light.
When does Vernal Equinox happen?
Spring Equinox has a specific time, at 2:01 am PT on March 20. No need to set an alarm. You can celebrate the equinox all day on March 20.
How are equinoxes different from solstices?
Solstices are the excess for days and nights. The Solstice of Tag -in is the longest day while the winter solstice is the shortest. The Solstice of Tag -Its for the Northern Hemisphere hit June 20 while the winter solstice occurs on December 21 this year.
Solstices get more love than equinoxes.
“The humps are easier to mark and illustrate than the inflection points, which are more subtle changes, so the solstices have caught all the attention,” Rice said. All of these are associated with sun and earth, so think of solstices and equinox as siblings that each has their own arrow -time connection.
What does equinox look like from space
It can be difficult to describe the tilt of the soil and what happens during the equinox from down to the ground, so NASA combines a video showing the land as a satellite sees.
It monitors our planet through its time. Watch how night shifts and daylight over time.
How can you celebrate Spring Equinox
You've probably heard that the only day you can balance a raw egg at the end of it is in the equinox. This legend may be accompanied by some vague discussion points about the gravity and alignment of the Earth and the sun.
I balance this egg at the end of it one day not the equinox.
One of the annual roles of rice equinox is the debunk of the myth of balancing eggs.
“Astronomers are usually on the Internet telling people no, they can't really balance an egg at the end of it in an equinox,” he said. You can go ahead and try it, but be sure to try it one day without the equinox. I pulled it out in February. 27, just in case you wonder.
Equinox is a subtle phenomenon. There are no shows of heaven to mark the sun. Don't let it stop you. Vernal Equinox is what you do here.
“It is considered that the orbit of Earth is no beginning or end, one year can start at any time, and the equinox is more significant to astronomy than January 1,” Rice said.
You can come up with your own way to celebrate the occasion. Tell your friends and co -workers this is the start of the astronomical spring. Plant some seeds. Clean your house. Spend time outside. Make plans on the spring break. And take a moment to put in the sun, tilt the earth and our place to the space that brings us the Vernal Equinox.
