Welcome Spring 2016!

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Today is the day of the Vernal Equinox, which means it is the official first day of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere. Conversely, it marks the official first day of Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. In astronomical terms, the Vernal Equinox marks the time when the axis of our planet increases its bend towards the Sun. In the Northern Hemisphere this causes the days to have longer daylight hours and the temperatures to grow warmer.

Spring has always been a welcomed sign of renewal. The grass begins to become greener, the trees bud new leaves and flowers spring up from the ground and bloom. The birds are hatching eggs and all kinds of animals are giving birth to their young.

This year, Spring has a very special significance. In 2016, Spring is arriving earlier than usual! Normally, Spring arrives on March 21, but this year it arrives a whole day earlier! As a result this is the earliest Spring has arrived in 120 years, since 1896! Therefore, it is safe to say that no one alive today has seen Spring arrive a whole day earlier than usual.

This special circumstance of an earlier than usual Spring has to do with the fact that 2016 is a leap year and how our Gregorian calendar works. I explained the precise workings of the Gregorian calendar and leap day in depth, in my recent blog post “What Is Leap Day & This Day in History”.

Now that you are versed with this unusual fact about the early arrival of the first day of Spring (or Autumn for those in the Southern Hemisphere) go out and dazzle your friends and family with your brilliance! 😉