When Is the Spring Equinox

Depending on where you live in the Northern Hemisphere, the vernal equinox (better known as the first day of spring) begins every year on March 19 or 20. But what exactly is an equinox, and who decided that was when spring should begin? The answer to those questions is a little more complicated than you may think. The Earth and the Sun To understand what an equinox is, you must first know a little bit about our solar system. The earth rotates on its axis, which is tilted at 23.5 degrees. It takes 24 hours to complete one rotation. As the earth spins on its axis, it also orbits around the sun, which takes 365 days to complete. During the year, the planet slowly tilts on its axis as it orbits the sun. For half the year, the Northern Hemisphere—the portion of the planet that lies above the Equator—receives more sunlight than the Southern Hemisphere. For the other half, the Southern Hemisphere receives more sunlight. But on two days each calendar year, both hemispheres receive an equal amount of sunlight. These two days are called equinoxes, a Latin word that means equal nights. In the Northern Hemisphere, the vernal (Latin for spring) equinox occurs on March 19 or 20, depending on which time zone you live in. The autumnal equinox, which signals the start of fall, begins on September 21 or 22, again depending on which time zone youre in. In the Southern Hemisphere, these seasonal equinoxes are inverted. On these days, day and night both last 12 hours, although the daylight can actually last up to eight minutes longer than night due to atmospheric refraction. This phenomenon causes sunlight to bend around the curve of the earth, depending on conditions such as atmospheric pressure and humidity, allowing light to linger after sunset and appear before sunrise. The Start of Spring Theres no international law that says spring must begin on the vernal equinox. Humans have been observing and celebrating seasonal changes based on how long or short the day is since time began. That tradition became codified in the Western world with the advent of the Gregorian calendar, which linked the change of seasons to the equinoxes and solstices. If you live in North America,  the vernal equinox  in 2018 begins at 6:15 a.m. in Honolulu, Hawaii; at 10:15 a.m. in Mexico City; and at 1:45 p.m. at St. Johns, Newfoundland, Canada. But because the earth doesnt complete its orbit in a perfect 365 days, the start of the vernal equinox  changes annually. In 2018, for example, the equinox begins in New York City at 12:15 p.m., Eastern Daylight Time. In 2019, it doesnt begin until 5:58 p.m. on March 20. But in 2020, the equinox starts the night before, at 11:49  p.m.   At the other extreme,  the sun  at the  North Pole  lies on the horizon of the earths surface on the March Equinox. The sun rises at noon to the horizon on the March Equinox and the North Pole remains lit until the autumnal equinox. At the South Pole, the sun sets at noon after endless daylight for the previous six months (since the autumnal equinox). The Winter and Summer Solstice Unlike the two equinoxes  when days and nights are equal, the two annual solstices mark the days when the hemispheres receive the most and least sunlight. They also signal the beginning of summer and winter. In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice occurs on June 20 or 21, depending on the year and where you live. This is the longest day of the year north of the equator. The winter solstice, the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, occurs on December 21 or 22. Its the opposite in the Southern Hemisphere. Winter begins in June, summer in December. If you live in New York City, for example, the 2018 summer solstice occurs at 6:07 a.m. on June 21 and the winter solstice at 5:22 p.m. on Dec. 21. In 2019, the summer solstice starts at 11:54 a.m., but in 2020, it occurs at 5:43 p.m. on June 20.  In 2018, New Yorkers will mark the winter solstice at 5:22 p.m. on Dec. 21, 11;19 p.m. on the 21st in 2019, and 5:02 a.m. on the 21st in 2020. Equinoxes and Eggs It is a widely held assumption that one can only balance an egg on its end on the equinoxes but this is simply an urban legend  that began in the U.S. after a 1945 Life magazine article on a Chinese egg-balancing stunt. If youre patient and careful, you can balance an egg on its bottom anytime.   Sources Byrd, Deborah. March Equinox! Happy Spring or Fall. EarthSky.org. 20 March 2017.Epstein, Dave. Why is Monday Considered Spring? The Vernal Equinox, Explained. BostonGlobe.com 20 March 2017.History.com staff. Vernal (Spring) Equinox. History.com.Royal Museums Greenwich staff. Equinoxes and Solstices. RMG.org.

Essay The Strengths and Weaknesses of Skagit Valley College

The strengths and weaknesses of Skagit Valley College differ from which campus you attend. The particular strengths and disadvantages can range from: students able to retake their Compass Test, high school students can attend free, Skagit prepares students for four year colleges; but my campus does not have many classes, its first come/first serve, and it’s a small school that doesn’t have many programs. My campus has criminal justice classes, but not a criminal justice program. The class points you in the right direction but doesn’t help you in real life situations. There could be possible solutions for these weaknesses. Students or civilians take a Compass Test to see where they lie at. Basically the Compass test is used to†¦show more content†¦As Skagit Valley College may be excellent, it also has its weaknesses such as the first come/first serve policy or statement. If a person is on the right lead to his/her career but is having trouble getting into a class required for a degree, that takes out proportions of his/her time waiting until the next chance. Sometimes students are frustrated and it affects their grades. Other times they want to or quit and wait until they can go somewhere else. It all depends on how a person is going to respond or react to a class they are seeking. Also the campus I attend to at Whidbey Island is very small. This doesn’t give students the full experience of how a regular college is like. Several Universities are huge and have several students attending their campus. Whidbey’s campus is like a tenth of a regular college. Skagit Valley College on Whidbey Island doesn’t have many classes. I wanted to take classes for medical tech, but I found none. This can affect students that prefer particular majors, as of course the campus doesn’t offer it. So this leaves them unexperienced when they go to a college that has their course available. The people that live on this island sh ould convince the government that they should invest more money into Skagit Valley College Whidbey Island Campus. If we convince the government to support us, then we should have a vote for

The Autobiography Of Martin Luther King Free Essays

â€Å"The Autobiography Of Martin Luther King, Jr.† is a first hand account of the life of one of America’s greatest civil rights activist. Martin Luther King Jr. We will write a custom essay sample on The Autobiography Of Martin Luther King or any similar topic only for you Order Now , also known as Dr. King, was most known for his contribution to events such as the Selma to Montgomery March, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the march on Washington where he would deliver his famous â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech. All of these events in turn changed America’s view on racial bias, segregation, and African American rights. I chose to read on Dr.King because on every January 21 on MLK day and I was curious why he is being celebrated. I later learned how Dr.King dramatically impacted the United States of America gifting equal opportunity to everyone no matter their race or religion. Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta Georgia. His mother was a teacher and his father was a Baptist minister, which got him into religion at a young age.Martin was a bright student skipping 9th and 11th grade going on to attend Morehouse College in Atlanta at age 15. He continued his religious education eventually becoming a Baptist minister at the age of 19 like his father. While Martin was pursuing his doctorate at Boston University he met his future wife Coretta Scott. They would marry in the summer of 1953 and the following year he received his first preaching job at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery Alabama. In 1955 King received his doctorate in systematic theology from Boston University. Later that year on December 1 Rosa Parks was arrested after refusing to give her seat to a white man and sit in the back of the bus. This event caused MLK and other civil rights activist to join forces and boycott the Montgomery city buses on December 5, 1955. On January 30, 1956 MLK was speaking to a mass meeting when his home was bombed. Luckily no one was injured but people were angry at those who bombed his home. King addressed the angry crowd and pleading nonviolence, something he learned from Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi. Later that year on November 13 the U.S. Supreme Court declared the Montgomery and Alabama bus segregation laws unconstitutional. On August 28, 1963 King joined The March on Washington witch attracted more than two hundred thousand demonstrators. On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial King delivered his famous â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech. In 1964 he was named Time Magazine’s â€Å"Man of the Year† and won the Nobel Peace Prize. Toward the end of his life King continued to be a political figure voicing his position on controversies and leading movements. Some include equal voting rights, opposing the Vietnam War, and even organising a mass civil disobedience campaign called the â€Å"Poor People’s Campaign†. On April 4, 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel by a man named James Earl Ray. Dr. King passed away at the young age of 39. This autobiography was an insightful first hand account of the life of MLK and I would recommend it to a classmate. This book really inspired me to accomplish my goals in life much like Dr.King did. King overcame struggles such as violence, racism, and imprisonment to accomplish his goals. If I met Dr. King I would thank him for his sacrifices and strides he made for equality. He had a dream that we are all living out today, an equal opportunity to succeed. How to cite The Autobiography Of Martin Luther King, Papers