At the ruins of Chichen Itza, the ancient Maya city in Mexico, crowds now gather on the spring (and fall) equinox to watch as the afternoon sun creates shadows that resemble a snake moving along the stairs of the 79-foot-tall Pyramid of Kukulkan, also called El Castillo. The word solstice comes from the Latin “solstitium,” meaning “stopped sun.” Spring Equinox Traditionsįor centuries, people have celebrated the vernal equinox. The winter solstice, on December 21 or December 22 in the Northern Hemisphere, happens when the sun is farthest south of the equator it’s the shortest day of the year. The summer solstice, on June 20 or June 21 in the Northern Hemisphere, occurs when the sun is farthest north of the equator it’s the longest day of the year in terms of daylight. In addition to two annual equinoxes, there are two solstices every year. The Difference between an Equinox and a Solstice Since the Earth actually takes about 365.24 days to orbit the sun, equinoxes happen around six hours later from year to year, before moving back a day on leap years. Six months after the March equinox, another equinox occurs around September 22 or 23 and marks the beginning of fall in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere. Additionally, equinoxes are the only two times a year that the sun rises due east and sets due west. Someone standing on the equator on an equinox can observe the sun passing directly overhead. As the Earth orbits the sun over the course of a year, different places get sunlight for different amounts of time.Īn equinox occurs at the moment when the Earth’s axis doesn’t tilt toward or away from the sun. The Earth tilts at an angle of 23.5 degrees on its axis relative to its plane of orbit around the sun.
The vernal equinox occurs on March 20 or March 21 each year and signals the start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere (and fall in the Southern Hemisphere).
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