Today’s the first day of spring, otherwise known as the spring equinox. But what is an equinox, exactly? The answer lies in the tilt of the Earth’s axis. When it’s winter in the Northern Hemisphere, those of us above the equator are tilted away from the sun, giving us shorter days and longer nights. In summer, we’re tilted toward the sun, so we can enjoy longer days and shorter nights. But the equinox is right in between. It"s the moment during Earth"s annual revolution around the sun when its axis is neither tilting away nor tilting toward the sun, giving everyone on the planet an equal split of day and night. This phenomenon happens twice a year—in March and again in September. For folks in the Northern Hemisphere, today signals a shift toward the long days of summer. But in the Southern Hemisphere, everything"s flipped. It"s the autumnal equinox today—and, yes, winter is coming.
Hello, spring!
Today in History
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A crested partridge
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International Tiger Day
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Celebrating Take Your Dog to Work Day
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It’s not a pinecone, it’s a pangolin
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Sea Otter Awareness Week
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Sunny day, sweepin the clouds away
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Is there a bug-egg emoji for this?
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American robin
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Glass footbridge in Zhangjiajie, China
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Irohazaka road
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Ring of Brodgar, Orkney, Scotland
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Daiichi Tadami River Bridge, Fukushima, Japan
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Eye of the cave
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Northern coast of Colombia
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Sleep tight, little hedgehog
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Ringing in the new year at Teotihuacan
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National Park Service Founders Day
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Rays on parade
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A wild and scenic scene
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Riding the bore tide at Turnagain Arm, Cook Inlet, Alaska
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Iceland awaits the Yule Lads
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A plot was afoot
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Native American Heritage Month
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Stompin’ with the Big Chief
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Château de Villandry, France
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Southern right whales sail home to South Africa
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Rockin with the rockhoppers
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European hedgehog
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Venture into a prehistoric gallery of art
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Saguaro cacti, Ironwood Forest National Monument, Arizona