September Equinox Marks the Official Start of Fall 2022



The September equinox marks the start of the fall season for the Northern Hemisphere, which is accompanied by colder weather and changing foliage. The autumnal or spring equinox for 2022 takes place on September 22 at 8:04 p.m. CDT (depending on which hemisphere you are in).

According to Alphonse Sterling, an astronomer at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, the Sun shines directly over the equator during an equinox. According to him, this leads to almost equal amounts of day and night everywhere on earth, with the exception of the North and South Poles, where the Sun roughly straddles the horizon for the whole of the day. The Northern Hemisphere gradually experiences later sunrises and earlier sunsets after the autumnal equinox, lengthening daytime hours and shortening nighttime hours. The converse is true in the Southern Hemisphere, when the days start to get longer.

An example of the spring (March) and fall (September) equinoxes. Both hemispheres experience almost equal quantities of daylight at the equinoxes. (Illustration not scaled.) Credit: Genna Duberstein/NASA/GSFC

The Earth's slanted axis, which always points in the same direction, causes seasons. The angle of sunlight that the Northern and Southern Hemispheres receive varies as Earth revolves around the Sun.

"Sunlight is more direct on the June solstice (summer in the Northern Hemisphere), therefore it warms the earth more effectively," stated Mitzi Adams. She works as an assistant manager for NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center's Heliophysics and Planetary Science Branch. Winter sunshine in the Southern Hemisphere is less direct, which makes it harder for the ground to heat up.

An illustration that helps explain how the Earth's tilted axis affects the seasons in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres throughout the year. NASA and Space Place

Unlike meteorological seasons, which are determined by annual temperature cycles, astronomical seasons are determined by the Earth's orbit around the Sun. In accordance with the weather and the Gregorian calendar, meteorologists divide the seasons into four time periods: winter (December through February), spring (March through May), summer (June through August), and fall (September through November).

The equinoxes and solstices, which occur twice a year each, are what define astronomical seasons. Solstices, which signal the start of summer or winter, occur when the Sun appears to be at its lowest or highest point in the sky during the year. The longest (summer solstice) or shortest (winter solstice) day of the year is a frequent term used to describe solstices.

The September equinox marks the beginning of a new season for everyone on Earth. Enjoy the onset of cooler weather after a hot summer and say hello to early sunsets and late sunrises, Northern Hemisphere residents.

By LANE FIGUEROA, NASA 

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