Astronomically speaking, spring 2008 begins with the vernal equinox on March 20th in the Northern Hemisphere and with the autumnal equinox on September 22nd in the Southern Hemisphere. Some dictionaries define spring according to full months, in which case spring begins March 1st in the Northern Hemisphere, and September 1st in the Southern Hemisphere.
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Spring comes in between the 19th to the 23rd of March and at different times. It changes on a yearly basis because the first official day of spring is the (Spring) Vernal Equinox. This is when the sun is directly above the equator. It rises due East and sets due West and does not do so on the exact same day every year, since the calendar is not exactly 365 precise days every single year.
In 2009, spring arrived on March 20; the sun was above the equator, and crossed to the northern hemisphere at approximately 11:47p.m.
The first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere this year (2009) was March 20. The equinox was at 5:48 GMT. In general, the four seasons correspond to the relative position of the sun to the earth. Meteorological determination of spring is calculated according to when the sun passes through the equatorial plane. When going from winter to spring, the sun is moving north; as soon as the sun crosses the equator, we call it spring. == == The above applies to places north of the equator.
"Spring", a time of melting and new growth, occurs about September-November in places south of the equator, e.g., Australia, New Zealand, Africa, Brazil...).
The official date of spring south of the equator (corresponding to the first official day of fall in places north of the equator) would be around September 20/21, depending on when the sun crosses the equator. Countries such as Australia and New Zealand, however, designate the first day of September as the official first day of spring.
Simultaneously, places in the Southern Hemisphere observe the Autumnal Equinox.
In the US and Canada:
Saturday, March 20, at approximately midnight is the official first day of spring for 2010 in the Northern Hemisphere (Vernal Equinox).
On that day, the Southern Hemisphere observes the Autumnal Equinox, which is the equivalent of the start of Autumn.
First_day_of_spring_in_the_Northern_Hemisphere">First day of spring in the Northern HemisphereIn general, the four seasons correspond to the relative position of the sun to the earth. Meteorological determination of spring is calculated according to when the sun passes through the equatorial plane. When going from winter to spring, the sun is moving north; as soon as the sun crosses the equator, we call it spring. (This applies to places north of the equator.)
First day of spring in the Southern HemisphereThe official date of spring south of the equator (corresponding to the first official day of fall in places north of the equator) would be around September 20/21, depending on when the sun crosses the equator.
Countries such as Australia and New Zealand, however, designate the first day of September as the official first day of spring.
Background information regarding the seasons:
Spring comes in between the 19th to the 23rd of March and at different times. It changes on a yearly basis because the first official day of spring is the (Spring) Vernal Equinox. This is when the sun is directly above the equator. It rises due East and sets due West and does not do so on the exact same day every year; this is because the calendar is not exactly 365 precise days every single year.
In 2009, spring arrived on March 20; the sun was above the equator, and crossed to the Northern Hemisphere at approximately 11:47 p.m.
March 19, March 20, September 22 or September 23, depending on where you are.
Northern hemisphere spring starts at 2012-03-20 05:14 UTC.
Southern hemisphere spring starts at 2012-09-22 14:49 UTC.
The beginning of spring, which is the time of the spring equinox, varies depending on where we are in the leap year cycle, but it always falls after 18th March and before 23rd March in the northern hemisphere, and it always falls after 20th September and before 25th September in the southern hemisphere.
Tuesday, 20 March 2012 is the first day of spring
The first day of spring in 1960 was March 20.
In the northern hemisphere, the first day of Spring in 2016 is on 20 April, while in the year 2023 it is on 21 March. In the southern hemisphere, the first day of Spring is always 1 September, and not on the vernal equinox.
20th march
The word is "equinoctial" = equal day and night. It occurs twice a year, on the first day of Spring, and the first day of Autumn.