First Day Of Spring March 20, And Other Fascinating Facts About The ...

Spring arrives on Sunday. The exact moment of the spring, or vernal equinox, which is the point when the sun crosses the equator from north to south, is 11:33 a.m. Sunday this year.

After the equinox, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the sun, giving us longer periods of daylight.

The first day of spring can fall on March 19, 20 or 21, although it most often is March 20, the next March 19 equinox will occur in 2024 and we won’t see a March 21 spring opener until 2101.

“Because Earth actually travels around the sun in 365.24 days, an extra day is needed every fourth year, creating what we know as leap year,” according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “This also causes the exact date of the solstices and equinoxes to vary. Additionally, the elliptical shape of Earth’s orbit around the sun causes the lengths of the astronomical seasons to vary between 89 and 93 days.

“These variations in season length and season start would make it very difficult to consistently compare climatological statistics for a particular season from one year to the next. Thus, the meteorological seasons were born.”

So, in celebration of the 20th, here are rest of our 20 facts about spring:

Mid-March is home to the astronomical first day of spring, but the meteorological first day of spring is March 1. The Old Farmer’s Almanac notes, “Weather scientists divide the year into quarters to make it easier to compare seasonal and monthly statistics from one year to the next.

“The meteorological seasons are based on annual temperature cycles rather than on the position of Earth in relation to the Sun, and they more closely follow the Gregorian calendar. Using the dates of the astronomical equinoxes and solstices for the seasons would present a statistical problem, as these dates can vary slightly each year.”

Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England, is the international hotspot for the start of spring. Druids, Pagans, neo-druids, neo-pagans, Wiccans, tourists and ordinary local families will gather at Stonehenge to watch the sunrise over the ancient stones.

From a less Eurocentric perspective, Chichen Itza in Yucatan, Mexico, will draw thousands of pilgrims on the spring equinox for the return of the winged serpent Kukulcan to its 98-foot-tall, stepped terrace, pyramid temple. On the equinox – spring and fall – and several days before and after, afternoon sunlight causes seven isosceles triangles to form, creating a shadow that looks like a 120-foot-long snakes crawling down along the main stairway.

Many scholars believe Chichen Itza was built by the ancient Mayans as a place to observe rites of agriculture. Others note the importance of celestial events to Maya as the reason for the original construction.

On the spring equinox it’s possible to balance an egg on end. That’s true, but it’s also true on every other day of the year as well. The idea arose when America learned through a 1945 “Life” magazine article that the ancient Chinese had celebrated the first day of spring with an egg festival that included standing thousands of eggs on end. There was one catch in translating the concept to western folklore: The ancient Chinese celebrated that first day of spring about 6 weeks earlier than we do today.

The first day of spring marks the start of the Persian New Year, the rebirth of nature, which is celebrated by 13 days of festivities known as Nowruz. The celebration officially begins the moment the sun crosses the equator on the vernal equinox and focuses on the emerging, fresh, green foods.

We can celebrate similarly in Pennsylvania, where greens from “weeds” to landscaping around our homes are about to explode with new growth.

Based on leaf-out of plants like the lilac, natural spring – different from man-made calendar springs – has been arriving about eight days earlier than just a few decades ago.

Birdsong also will be on the increase in the coming days, as species from robins to cardinals establish their home territories and set out to attract mates.

Honeybees are more likely to swarm in spring, as they attempt to start new colonies from successful ones. Counterintuitive as it may see, swarming honeybees are generally quite docile and welcoming.

• When is the first day of spring? The answer can vary

Back on our man-made calendars, the vernal equinox coincides with Easter Sunday and days that are related to it, including Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Ascension Day and Pentecost.

According to the Time and Date website, the Bible places Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection around the time of the Jewish Passover, which was celebrated on the first full moon following the vernal equinox.

A survey on Facebook found that spring ranks right up there with the two weeks before Christmas as the time of year when couples are most likely to break up.

Spring fever is a real thing, according to Carly McCord, PhD, director of Telebehavioral Health and clinical assistant professor at the Texas A&M College of Medicine. She noted, “People may feel more energy or a renewed sense of self in the spring. They may become inspired to do some spring cleaning or start to eat healthy.”

Seasonal affective disorder is more commonly associated with fall and winter, but it can affect people in the spring and summer instead. Symptoms typical of spring and summer SAD include loss of interest, trouble sleeping, changes in appetite, weight changes and agitation or anxiety.

While spring and fall begin with an equinox, summer and winter start on a solstice, which happens when the sun reaches its most northerly or southerly points in the sky. Here, in the northern hemisphere, summer begins when that northerly mark is reached, and winter begins when that southerly mark arrives.

Spring 2022 will continue until 5:14 a.m. Tuesday, June 21, the summer solstice.

Contact Marcus Schneck at [email protected].