Ready for the first day of spring 2021? Even though we had a little taste of spring earlier this month when temperatures soared into the 60s and 70s, the real first day of spring will officially arrive this weekend with the spring equinox.
The first day of spring is Saturday, March 20, eight days before the full March “worm moon” will glow in the night sky.
The new season technically starts at 5:37 a.m. Eastern time this Saturday, which is when the sun will be shining directly on the Earth’s equator, bringing almost equal minutes of daylight and darkness all around the globe.
That moment is widely known as the spring equinox, but some people call it the March equinox or the vernal equinox.
Here are a few other facts — along with some myths and rituals — associated with the first day of spring.
The spring equinox, also known as the vernal equinox, will arrive this weekend, marking the official start of the 2021 spring season in the northern hemisphere.AccuWeather
Is the spring equinox always on the same day?
The spring equinox doesn’t arrive on the same day every year, but it always falls on one of these three days here in the northern hemisphere: March 19, March 20 or March 21.
In most years, the first day of spring lands on March 20. However, in 2020 the spring equinox arrived on March 19. This year it’s back to March 20, and that will be the case in 2022 and 2023.
The next time the spring equinox will occur on March 19 will be 2024, according to timeanddate.com. And the next time it arrives on March 21 will be 80 years from now — in 2101.
If you’re wondering why spring starts on different dates, you have to remember that “a year is not an even number of days and neither are the seasons,” notes Space.com. So, you can’t divide 365 days into four equal quarters and have and equal amount of days in every season.
In addition, the “earth’s elliptical orbit is changing its orientation relative to the sun, which causes the Earth’s axis to constantly point in a different direction,” the website says. “Since the seasons are defined as beginning at strict 90-degree intervals, these positional changes affect the time Earth reaches each 90-degree location in its orbit around the sun.”
The spring equinox is coming soon, marking the official start of the spring season.AccuWeather
Why is it called the spring equinox?
The word equinox was formed by two Latin words: “Equi” is the Latin prefix for “equal” and “nox” is the Latin word for “night.”
The other name of this annual occurrence, the vernal equinox, was derived from the word “vernal,” which translates to “new” and “fresh,” according to the Farmers’ Almanac, a rival publication of the Old Farmer’s Alamanc.
Can you really balance an egg on a flat surface when the spring equinox arrives? We tried it in our newsroom.Len Melisurgo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
Balancing an egg when spring arrives
If your friends claim they can balance a raw egg in an upright position — or make a broomstick stand up on a flat surface — during the spring equinox, because of the perfect gravitational pull, don’t believe them.
Those are myths that have been discounted by many experts. But that doesn’t stop scores of people from trying those feats every year on the first day of spring.
(We actually tried to balance some eggs in our newsroom when spring arrived in 2018. To see what happened, check out the video below.)
Spring equinox tied to Easter
In many cultures around the world, the start of spring is considered a time of rebirth and renewal. And some major religious holidays — including Easter and Passover — are timed to be celebrated after the spring equinox and after a specific spring moon cycle.
This year, Christians will celebrate Easter Sunday on April 4, because that’s the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring, according to the Farmers’ Almanac. In 2022, Easter Sunday will take place much later, on April 17, because the first full moon of spring will appear on Saturday, April 16.
The Jewish holiday of Passover is always celebrated in the early spring. This year, it will start on the night of Saturday, March 27, and end on Sunday, April 4. In 2022, Passover will be celebrated from the night of April 15 to April 23.
The date of Easter Sunday is determined by the date of the spring equinox and the first spring moon cycle.Pixabay.com
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Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com.