An equinox occurs. Day of spring equinox
Each person after a long and cold winter dreams of coming soon warm season of the year. The spring equinox 2018 will be the time when the Sun moves into the northern hemisphere and astronomical spring comes.
When does this day come?
Equinox occurs when the length of day and night becomes the same. This moment is observed during the crossing of the equator of the sky by the Sun. The vernal equinoxes are 365.24 solar days apart, so they occur at different time. Now astronomers have learned to accurately set the day of the equinox for several years in advance. For those who are wondering what date this event will take place in 2018, we can already answer for sure. So, Sun rays will plummet to the earth's equator on 03/20/18.
A bit of history
In the history of mankind, four key dates can be noted, in accordance with which the life of ancient people was built. In 2018 they will look like this:
| Day of spring equinox | 16:15 | 20.03.18 |
| Summer Solstice | 10:07 | 21.06.18 |
| Autumn equinox day | 1:54 | 23.09.18 |
| Winter solstice | 22:23 | 21.12.18 |
All these points are sacred. It is after these days that cardinal changes in nature come. The most revered date among our ancestors was still the day of the vernal equinox. He was awaited with the greatest impatience. He personified the victory of light and gave hope for the future. It is not surprising that many nations perceive this day as a real holiday. The darkness begins to recede, and the days increase. In ancient times, the equinox was associated with the onset of springtime. For some nations, this day announced the arrival of the New Year. After all, after it a new period began, when everything in nature and human life began to be updated.
As for our people, in the Slavic world the Komoyeditsa or Maslenitsa was celebrated on the equinox. On this day, it was customary to say goodbye to winter.
How they celebrate
Transition to new life cycle was celebrated with great enthusiasm among all peoples. People tried to leave everything bad in the past and hoped that the new period would bring them victories and good luck. This, above all, concerned the future harvest. This day was revered by almost all the peoples of our planet. Europeans during this period held numerous festivals and masquerades.
In pre-Christian Russia, when people worshiped pagan gods, the equinox was considered almost the most important day of the year. He was greeted with unprecedented joy and hope. The holidays lasted for several days and were called Maslenitsa week. Each day was dedicated to certain rituals:
- On Monday, housewives baked fragrant pancakes and larks, symbolizing the arrival of spring. The first pancake, according to custom, was destined for the Bear God. It was believed that he protected men during the hunt. On the same day, in Russian villages, a scarecrow was made of straw and old things, put on a stake and carried on a sleigh throughout the area.
- On Tuesday, the bride was arranged. In the early morning, the guys invited the girls to ride in a sleigh, and in the evening the matchmakers went to the houses of the future brides to discuss the details of the upcoming wedding.
- On Wednesday, mothers-in-law invited their sons-in-law to visit for pancakes, showing them how much they respect them. On Thursday, in all Russian villages, folk festivals were held with noisy exciting games and fairs, where you could taste pancakes with different stuffing and enjoy vintage drinks. Young people danced and sang songs. The bravest took part in fisticuffs and jumped over the fire. The day ended with the capture of the "snow city". The purpose of all the events of this day was to throw out the negative energy accumulated over the winter.
- On other days, older people performed all kinds of rituals aimed at obtaining a rich harvest and strengthening family ties (mother-in-law evenings, sister-in-law gatherings, etc.)
- On Sunday, it was customary to ask for forgiveness from each other. Also, people went to the bathhouse, trying to cleanse themselves of accumulated dirt in order to put on new and clean clothes and put an end to the past. Old and dilapidated things these days needed to be burned. The main event of this holiday, of course, is the burning of a straw effigy - a symbol of winter. Previously, the ashes from the scarecrow were scattered across the fields in the hope of getting a good harvest.
Currently, many traditions associated with the equinox are lost. However, fairs are still held in some Russian cities where you can taste pies, pancakes and other pastries. Performances of folk groups, master classes in various folk crafts are organized on the main squares. By this holiday, cafes and restaurants are adjusting their menu, including dishes of folk cuisine.
Signs
In the old days, when baking, housewives put various items related to everyday life into the products. So, if the household was found in a lark, for example:
- a button, it meant a quick new thing;
- coin - wealth;
- flower - foreshadowed the owner of beauty;
- berry - was to health.
If a woman was pregnant, then on Shrove Tuesday it was easy to find out the gender of the unborn baby. If a man took the first pancake, then an heir would be born, if a woman, then the future mistress.
According to Maslenitsa, it was easy to predict the weather for the next forty days. If the holiday was warm weather, then over the next month it was possible to forget about frosts and prepare for work on the ground.
In ancient times, people were sure that the heavens opened on the equinox and the most secret desires were fulfilled. On this day, it was customary to ask God for the most important thing:
- about the future harvest;
- about the health and well-being of the whole family.
On this holiday, it was forbidden to be sad. It was believed that on the day of the equinox everything could materialize, so crying and bad thoughts were forbidden. Joy and fun were a guarantee of a good mood for the whole year.
Since ancient times, people have known what an equinox is, although the physical essence of the phenomenon could only be explained with the advent of astronomy. There are two days a year - the spring and autumn equinoxes - which are very important. At this time, the Sun passes a certain point where the ecliptic and the equator intersect.
astronomical event
For astronomy, the days of the solstices and equinoxes play a big role. So what is an equinox and why does it happen?
As is known, astronomical event associated with the tilt of the axis of our planet and the orbit of the star. The Earth has a tilt of 23.5 degrees, it has a southern and northern hemisphere, which are illuminated almost equally. Because of this, the length of day and night is almost equal on the entire planet, with the exception of certain areas. But twice a year, the illumination is uniform throughout the planet. After these two days of the year, the nights in the Northern Hemisphere lengthen and the days become shorter.
Normally, sunlight reaches the surface of the planet only at one pole, while at the other it is night. And only on the days of the equinox, the rays of the Sun reach both poles so that they illuminate half of the planet, while the other half remains night.
Dates
The equinox is always shifting. This is due to the fact that the Earth revolves around our star not in a circle, but in an ellipse. As a result of this movement, the spring equinox falls on March 20-12, and the autumn day falls on September 22-23. The day itself is equal in length to the night.
The vernal equinox
One of the unique natural phenomena is the spring equinox. At this moment, the Sun crosses the celestial equator. During the movement of the Earth and the Sun, a moment arises when the rays of the luminary fall on the equator vertically. During the transition of the Sun from one hemisphere of the planet to another, day and night remain equal.
The day of the equinox is considered to be the beginning of the astronomical season. The interval from spring to spring day is considered a tropical year. It has approximately 365.24 days. Because of this incomplete 366th day, the day is pushed forward by almost six hours.
And what is the equinox for people and how does it affect the planet? For many peoples, on the day of the vernal equinox, New Year. This day is of great importance for Iran, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan. Some other countries of the Silk Road also associate the beginning of the new year with this natural phenomenon.
On this day, darkness and light are equal. There was a time when there were no calendars. At that time, the beginning of spring was determined precisely by the day of the equinox. It is believed that from this day the renewal of nature begins - the trees wake up, you can hear the first thunder, greenery begins to grow.
Our ancestors on the holiday of the spring equinox rolled burning wheels from the hill as a sign of respect for the Sun, its symbol. Festivities took place all over the country - people burned bonfires, jumped over them, danced, pulled the rope. On the spring equinox, baked goods were prepared and treated to loved ones, relatives, and taken as a gift to their ancestors.
autumn day
And what is the equinox and when does it happen, as is celebrated by the peoples of the world? Autumn day coincides with a large number of different celebrations.
In ancient Greece, a beautiful legend was associated with the autumn equinox, according to which the goddess of fertility Persephone returns to Hades in the underworld. On this day, various magical rituals should be performed, the successes and failures of the past months should be evaluated.
In China, the Autumn Festival, or Moon Festival, is held on this day. This day celebrates the abundance of the harvest. Traditionally, a moon cake is prepared on this day, to which goose eggs, lotus, dried fruits, and sesame are added.
In Japan, Higan is celebrated. Usually on this day, the Japanese commemorate the dead, decorate the graves. Higan has been celebrated since the nineteenth century.
In the middle of autumn, the pagans celebrated Mabon - the holiday of the cycle of the seasons. It is marked by the harvest of the second harvest, the beginning of winter preparations. It was customary on this day to “go to nature”, collect leaves, seeds.
After the day of the equinox, when our luminary passes into the Northern Hemisphere from the Southern, the astronomical change of seasons begins on Earth. So, spring comes to the Northern Hemisphere, and autumn comes to the Southern Hemisphere.
On the days of the equinox on the planet, day and night are equal to 12 hours. Although this statement has a small caveat, because at the North Pole and in southern regions time goes differently. "Almost" equal day and night are not actually equal. If we carry out exact mathematical calculations, then the day is longer than the night. Its duration is 12 hours 12 minutes.
Since ancient times, people have known what an equinox is and how the Sun moves across the sky. These days, the luminary rises strictly in the east, and sets strictly in the west. After the day of the vernal equinox, the Sun will begin to rise higher, the length of the day will increase. In autumn, the process takes place in reverse direction: The day is getting shorter and the night is getting longer.
Our ancestors believed that on the days of the equinox, you can find out the name of your husband, make wishes that will come true.
There are four moments in the annual cycle that play a significant role in life on Earth.
People have long known about the existence of these transition points, but the physical essence of these phenomena became clear only with the development. We are talking about two solstices (winter and summer) and two equinoxes (spring and autumn).
What is a solstice?
At the everyday level, we understand that the solstice is the day with the longest (summer solstice) or shortest (winter solstice) daylight hours. Our distant ancestors knew well that the day shortens before the winter solstice, and after it begins to increase. In summer, everything happens the other way around. It was also noted that on the day of the winter solstice, the sun occupies the lowest position above the horizon, and at the time of the summer solstice it passes highest point for the whole year.
What is happening with our planet and the Sun from a scientific point of view? Recall some astronomical concepts.
Celestial sphere- an imaginary surface that we look at while on Earth and looking at the sky. For us, earthly observers, it is in the celestial sphere that all celestial objects move, including the Sun.
Ecliptic- a circle located on the celestial sphere, along which the movement of the Sun relative to the Earth occurs.
equator of the celestial sphere- a circle located on the celestial sphere perpendicular to coincides with the equator of the Earth.
Due to the fact that the Earth's axis is inclined to the orbit of the planet around our star, the equator of the celestial sphere and the ecliptic do not coincide. Due to this, the seasons change with the moments of transition - the solstices.
On the day of the solstice, the Sun passes through the points of the ecliptic that are farthest from the celestial equator. Otherwise, it can be expressed as follows: the solstices are the moments of the greatest (winter) or least (summer) deviation of the earth's axis from the Sun.
Winter and summer solstice
Winter solstice occurs on December 21 or 22 (date may vary for different time zones). On this day in the northern hemisphere, the shortest daylight hours and the longest night are observed. The summer solstice falls on June 21 and is distinguished by the fact that this date has the longest daylight hours and the most fleeting night. 
In the southern hemisphere, opposite processes take place: there is a summer solstice in December, and a winter solstice in June.
What is an equinox?
There are two more important points in the annual cycle - the days of the spring and autumn equinoxes. These days the Sun passes the intersection points of the celestial equator and the ecliptic. The days of the equinoxes fall in the middle of the period from one solstice to another (although due to the fact that the earth moves around the Sun not in a circle, but in an ellipse, the dates shift slightly).
The spring equinox falls on March 20 or 21, and the autumn equinox on September 22 or 23. As the name implies, the equinoxes are the moments when the day is equal in length to the night.
How do the solstices and equinoxes affect life on Earth?
People have always known that critical points in the movement of our luminary across the celestial sphere affect nature. This is especially true for residents of northern latitudes, where the change of seasons is more pronounced. For example, from the day of the March equinox, real spring comes to us: it becomes warmer, the soil warms up, plants come to life. This is of great importance for agriculture.
It is no coincidence that the agricultural calendar has always been associated with the days of the solstices and equinoxes. These dates included important pagan holidays, some of which were adopted by Christianity. Here are the holidays:
Winter Solstice - Catholic Christmas and Kolyada;
Spring equinox - Maslenitsa;
Summer solstice - the feast of Ivan Kupala;
The autumn equinox is a harvest festival. 
As you can see, in the technocratic 21st century, we celebrate these events without even thinking that they are connected with the annual solar cycle and how dependent our ancestors were on natural phenomena.
March
June
September
December
Equinox- the moment when the center of the Sun in its apparent movement along the ecliptic crosses the celestial equator.
The spring equinox occurs either on March 21, when the Sun moves from the southern hemisphere to the northern, and the autumn equinox, or on September 23, when it moves from the north to the south. These days, for all places on the Earth (excluding the regions of the earth's poles), day is almost equal to night ("almost" - due to refraction, the fact that the Sun is not a point source of light, but a disk, and also due to the fact that itself the equinox is offset from 6 or 18 hours local solar time). On the days of the spring equinox and the autumn equinox, the Sun rises almost exactly in the east and sets almost exactly in the west. Whereas after the spring equinox (in the northern hemisphere) it rises north of the east and sets north of the west, and after the autumn equinox it rises south of the east and sets south of the west.
The points of intersection of the celestial equator with the ecliptic are called equinoxes. Because of the ellipticity of its orbit, the Earth moves from the autumnal equinox to the spring equinox rather than from the spring to the autumnal equinox. Due to the precession of the earth's axis, the relative position of the equator and the ecliptic is slowly changing; this phenomenon is called the prelude of the equinoxes. During the year, the position of the equator changes so that the Sun arrives at the equinox 20 minutes 24 seconds earlier than the Earth completes a complete orbit. As a result, the position of the equinoctial points on the celestial sphere changes. From the point of the vernal equinox, right ascensions are counted along the celestial equator, longitudes along the ecliptic. Determining the position of this fictitious point on the celestial sphere is one of the main tasks of practical astronomy.
spring and autumnal equinox are considered the astronomical beginning of the seasons of the same name. The interval between two equinoxes of the same name is called a tropical year, which is adopted for measuring time. The tropical year is approximately 365.2422 solar days, so the equinox falls at different times of the day, moving forward each time by almost 6 hours. The Julian year has 365¼ days. The intercalary day of a leap year returns the equinox to the previous number of the year. But the tropical year is slightly shorter than the Julian one, and the equinox is actually slowly receding in the Julian calendar. In the Gregorian chronology, due to the omission of 3 days in 400 years, it is almost motionless (the average Gregorian year is 365.2425 days).
Peoples and religions in which the New Year begins on the equinox
- Baha'i - Nowruz see Baha'i calendar
- Kazakh New Year
Historical events that took place on the equinox
- Watch: March 20
- Watch: March 21
- Watch: March 22
Notes
see also
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010 .
- Election Day
- Resurrection Day in Islam
See what the "Day of the Spring Equinox" is in other dictionaries:
Day of spring equinox- The time when the center of the Sun in its apparent movement along the ecliptic crosses the celestial equator is called an equinox. The Earth at this time is in such a position in relation to the Sun, when both hemispheres, from the equator to the poles, heat up ... ... Encyclopedia of newsmakers
Astronomical spring, or the day of the vernal equinox- March 21 is the day of the onset of astronomical spring, it is also called the day of the vernal equinox. At this time, the Earth is in such a position with respect to the Sun, when both hemispheres, from the equator to the poles, heat up relatively equally. Encyclopedia of newsmakers
Autumn equinox day- September 23, 2013 at 00:44 Moscow time (MSK) the Sun will once again cross the celestial equator and move from the northern hemisphere of the celestial sphere to the southern one. The day of the autumnal equinox will come, astronomical autumn in ... ... Encyclopedia of newsmakers
Autumn equinox (holiday)- The day of the autumn equinox, the time of commemoration of deceased relatives and visiting their graves
green day- (Jap. みどりの日 Midori no hi?) is a public holiday in Japan. Since 2007, celebrated on May 4; in 1989 2006, celebrated on April 29. Part of the Japanese Golden Week. Until 1989, April 29 was the birthday of Emperor Showa ... ... Wikipedia
coming of age day- (jap. 成人 の日 seijin no hi?) Japanese public holiday, which is celebrated on the second Monday of January (one of the "happy Mondays"). On this day, all Japanese who last year turned 20 years old, celebrate their ... ... Wikipedia
Labor Thanksgiving Day- Labor Thanksgiving Day is an echo of the traditional Japanese harvest gratitude holiday. Labor Thanksgiving Day ... Wikipedia
April Fool's Day Encyclopedia of newsmakers
April Fool's Day: the history and traditions of the holiday April 1st is April Fools Day. This day is not included in any calendars of significant and festive dates, but it can be quite attributed to international ones, since the custom is to have fun, joke and deceive each other on April 1 ... ... Encyclopedia of newsmakers
Earth Day- Not to be confused with international day Mother Earth. Not to be confused with Earth Hour. Earth Day The symbol of the day is green ... Wikipedia
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When the midday sun drops lower and the nights become noticeably colder, it means only one thing - summer has come to an end in the Northern Hemisphere. The autumnal equinox occurred on Sunday, September 23, officially marking the start of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere and the start of spring in the Southern. Day and night on this day are approximately equal in duration about 12 hours. This happens twice a year.
Smileus | shutterstock.com
Why is the length of the day not 12 hours? 
As we said, on the day of the equinox, the length of day and night on the entire planet is equal. Actually it is. However, in astronomical tables one can find a contradiction to this rule: the duration of daylight slightly exceeds the duration of the dark time of the day.
This is explained by atmospheric refraction, which refracts sunlight and, as it were, raises the luminary above the horizon. Because of this, we observe sunrise a little earlier, and sunset a little later than it happens in reality.
The angular dimensions of the Sun also make a small contribution. So, the difference between the moments of sunrise and sunset is determined by the upper point of the star, while the equinox is estimated by the center of the solar disk.
The exact division of the 24-hour day into two halves is due to the reason why there are seasons on Earth. The planet rotates on an axis that is tilted 23.5 degrees relative to the plane of the orbit. As the Earth travels its 365-day orbit around the Sun, the different hemispheres lean closer to or away from our star's warming rays. An equinox occurs when the Sun is directly above our planet's equator. Both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres receive approximately the same amount of sunlight on these days. Only on the spring and autumn equinoxes does the sun rise directly in the east and set exactly in the west.
By December, the Northern Hemisphere will tilt and receive the Sun's rays at a steeper angle, resulting in long shadows and frost. Eventually, the star will reach its lowest point in the midday sky, marking the December solstice.
For reference On the days of the equinox, the Sun is at its zenith above the equator, and on the days of the winter and summer solstices, it is above 23.5 ° south and north latitude, respectively. From the solstice to the equinox, 3 months or 90 days pass. During this time, the Sun moves 23.5°, per month 7.8°, per day 0.26°.
Peoples around the world have attached importance to the dates that mark the change of seasons. One notable example is the ancient Mayan step pyramid known as the Pyramid of Kukulkan at Chichen Itza in Mexico. Precisely at sunset on the winter and summer solstices, sunlight hits the building's steep staircase at such an angle that it creates an eerie snake-like shape that appears to be slithering across the temple.
Pyramid of Kukulkan. photopixel | shutterstock.com
Is there an equinox on other planets?
Other planets also have seasons and equinoxes, although the scale of these phenomena is quite different. At Mars the tilt of the axis is very similar to that of the earth, so the seasons are the same on it. Due to its distance from the Sun, the Martian winter lasts 154 cold days.
A nightmare planet for those who suffer from will be Uranus. Its axis tilts nearly 90 degrees, causing the planet to mostly spin on its side. The length of the orbit of Uranus around the Sun is 84 years. Winters on the planet last 42 years.
Sometimes seasonal changes affect how we see the planets. During the equinox on Saturn, which goes around the Sun in 15 Earth years, the Sun shines edge to famous rings planets, casting low shadows on them that show their three-dimensional structure.
