When Is The First Day Of Spring? The Answer Can Vary

Depending upon your chosen reference, spring starts today or March 16 or March 20 or some other day in March or April when it just feels like the warmer season is here to stay.

Most of us today will be looking ahead 3 weeks to Sunday, March 20, the day on the calendars marked as the spring equinox, the first day of spring 2022.

The spring, or vernal, equinox occurs when the Sun crosses the equator, heading north in our sky. This year it happens at 11:33 a.m. Sunday, March 20.

That’s the astronomical start of spring. It can fall on March 19, 20 or 21, although we won’t be another March 21 equinox in the continental U.S. 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.”

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.”

But Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow on February 2 and predicted six more weeks of winter, which would place the first day of spring on March 16.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac foresees much warm weather – dare we say “springlike” – throughout March but will one last blast of winter with snow and cold temperatures the week of March 10-16. The 230-year source expects temperatures to average 5 degrees above normal in March.

The Farmers’ Almanac, which has been issuing long-range weather forecasts since 1818, also predicts snow during the period of March 12-15, but warm temperatures through much of the month.

And, if you’re like me, an anxious gardener and wild-foods forager, the true, on-the ground start of spring is a moving target. It goes something like this: Today, maybe today. Tomorrow, maybe today. The day after tomorrow, maybe today. And, so on, until I get the first seeds in the ground and the first meal of fresh dandelion greens plucked from the backyard.

Contact Marcus Schneck at [email protected].