Brace yourself – the first day of fall in the Northern Hemisphere is this Saturday – September 22nd. For those of you who like Latin, the first day of fall is also known as the Autumnal Equinox. Here’s a definition of what that means from the Old Farmer’s Almanac:
The word equinox comes from the Latin aequus, meaning “equal” and nox, meaning “night.” During the equinox, the Sun crosses what we call the “celestial equator.” Imagine a line that marks the equator on Earth extending up into the sky above the equator from north to south. Earth’s two hemispheres receive the Sun’s rays about equally. The Sun is overhead at noon as seen from the equator, so at this point, the amount of nighttime and daytime (sunlight) are roughly equal to each other.
So any minute now the leaves will start changing color and falling – I find that vaguely depressing, but it can be pretty. Want to know when fall color will be at its peak for you? Check out the interactive map from Thrillist.com here.
As for me – I’m looking forward to the first day of Spring! Bring on the Vernal Equinox for me!
Want to know more about the Autumnal Equinox? Check out this article from the Old Farmers Almanac.
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