CNN
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Twice a year, the sun is not my favorite. Everyone on Earth appears to be in equal positions – at least in terms of the amount of light and dark people they get.
On Monday, we will enter the second and final equinox of 2025. If present in the Northern Hemisphere, it is known as the autumn equinox (or autumn equinox). For those south of the equator, this equinox actually marks the arrival of spring.
Technically, your location on Earth also determines local time and the date you will experience the autumn equinox. It will be held in the US, Africa and Europe on Monday, September 22nd. In some Asian destinations, the next day will be.
People near the equator don’t notice anything – they spend around 12 and 12 hours of nights all year round. However, in places like Alaska, northern Canada and Scandinavia, hardy people near Paul experience wild swings at day/night ratios each year. They have long, dark winters, then summer bliss, where the night barely invades.
However, during equinox, everyone from poles to poles can enjoy the day and night 12/12 division. Well, there’s only one friction – it’s not as completely “equal” as you thought.
There is a good explanation as to why you can’t get exactly 12 hours of sunlight at the mint. It’s further down below.
Here’s the answer to the autumn autumn questions:
From the CNN Fast Facts file: The term equinox comes from the Latin word equinoxium, meaning “evenness between day and night.”
equinox arrives at 18:19 UTC (adjusted universal time) on Sunday, September 22nd.
For people in places like Montreal, Virginia and Richmond, local time is 2:19pm. It’s 1:19pm in St. Louis and 12:19pm in Mexico City. Going further west, it’s 11:19am in Seattle.
Croatian residents in Amsterdam and Split will move in opposite directions across the Atlantic Ocean and formally mark the occasion on Sunday at 8:19pm. Moving further east, Dubai marks the exact event at 10:19pm
For Hong Kong residents, it is 2:19am on Monday, September 23rd. In Tokyo, it will be 3:19am on the same day. You can click here to enter your city.
yes. Autumn officially starts at the autumn equinox.
However, there are actually two measures of the season. It is called “astronomical seasons” (following the arrival of equinoxes and solutes) and “weather seasons.”
CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar explains the difference.
“Astronomical collapse is basically the period from the autumn equinox to the winter solstice. These dates vary one or two days each year,” she says.
“Weather falls are different. The dates don’t change, they are based on climatological seasons rather than the angle of the Earth compared to the sun. These are probably seasons that more people know better,” says Chinchar.
The weather seasons are defined as follows: Spring starts from March 1st to May 31st. Summer is from June 1st to August 31st. Fall is from September 1st to November 30th. Winter is from December 1st to February 28th.
“This makes some dates difficult,” says Chinchar. “For example, on December 10th, most people consider winter, but if you’re using an astronomical calendar, it’s technically considered autumn because it’s before the winter solstice.”
She said that “meteorologists and meteorologists prefer to use ‘weather calendars’. Because not only does the dates remain the same, it’s easier to remember, but it’s more aligned with what people think is traditional season.”
The Earth rotates along an imaginary line that runs from the North Pole to the Antarctic. It is called the axis and this rotation gives us day and night.
However, as NASA explains, the axis is tilted at 23.5 degrees. It makes one hemisphere of the planet get exposed to more sunlight than the other due to its half-year orbit around the sun. This inconsistency in sunlight is what causes the seasons.
This effect will be the largest between late June and late December. These are solutes, and the most extreme differences between day and night, especially near the pole. (That’s why we leave light every day in places like Scandinavia during the summer for a very long time.)
Since the summer solstice in June, days have gradually been shorter in the Northern Hemisphere, with nights longer for the past three months. Welcome to Fall Equinox!
Long before the age of clocks, satellites and modern technology, our ancient ancestors knew a lot about the movement of the sun across the sky.
Just a few of the sites related to equinox and the annual passing of the sun.
• Stonehenge (UK): Many mysteries about these giant slabs remain, but we know they are in alignment to mark the annual passing of the Sun.
• Maltese Megalithic Temples: These seven temples on the Mediterranean island are some of the world’s earliest freestanding stone buildings, dating back 5,000-6,000 years. In the temples of Hagar Qim and Mnajdra, semicircular chambers are lined up, so the sun above the horse is surrounded by stones.
• Chichen Itza (Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico): El Castillo, Chichin Itza’s famous pyramid, will host an impressive show at the equinox. The pyramid, built by the Tortec Mayan people between 1050 and 1300, was built to cast shadows during equestrians at the bal north of El Castillo. It looks like the shape of a snake sliding down the stairs, and ancient special effects are elevated by the head of a carved beast on the base.
• Jantar Mantar (New Delhi, India): More recent origins (1724 and 1730), these buildings from the end of the Mughal era are astronomical observatory.
What are the autumn Equinox festival and rituals?
Around the world, autumn equinox is woven into our culture and celebrations.
In Greek mythology, the autumn equinox shows that the goddess Persephone has returned to the Underworld for three months, where she is reunited with her husband Hades.
The British harvest festival has roots in autumn equinox since the pagan era.
Chinese and Vietnamese people still celebrate Harvest Moon (also known as the Chinese to Prime Minister’s Festival). The lanterns line the streets as people give thanks and eat when they see the moon. The round pastry called Mooncakes is a favourite of the mid-season festival. It will be held on the 15th day of the month of August on the Chinese calendar. It was held on September 17th this year.
In Japan, autumn Equinox Day is a national holiday. According to the Coto Japanese Academy, it is known in Japanese as Shubun no Hi (Autumn Equinox Day). The roots of the celebration are thought to return to Shinto and Buddhism.
Depending on where you are on Earth, you will see that you will be exposed to a little more sunlight than the darkness of the equinox. How does that happen? The answer is complicated, but appealing.
“Almost” equal times of day and night are measured by sunrise and are a complicated way in which sunlight refraction in the atmosphere.
This bending of the ray means that the sun appears above the horizon when the actual position of the sun is below the horizon. This is because the latitudes higher than the equator are a little longer, as the sun will rise and it takes time to get closer to the pole.
In autumn equinox, the length of the day will vary slightly depending on where you are. Here are some breakdowns to provide rough ideas.
• At the Equator: Approximately 12 hours and 6 minutes (Quito, Ecuador)
• At 30° latitude: Approximately 12 hours 8 minutes (Egypt, Cairo)
• At 60 degrees latitude: approx. 12 hours 14 minutes (Helsinki, Finland)
For truly equal day/night splits, you will have to wait a few days after the official equinox. It is called Equilux. According to timeanddate.com, if equilux occurs for you, it depends on your latitude. The closer to the equator, the later the autumn equilibrium date.
At the equator itself, the equilibrium never arrives due to the aforementioned atmospheric refraction of sunlight. It is constantly exposed to sunlight along that line rather than darkness.
