Fall is just around the corner in the Southern Hemisphere, with cooler days and longer nights on this side of the globe.
In the Southern Hemisphere, where Chile is located, we are one week away from the equinox, which marks the end of summer this year, 2023. But what is behind this astronomical phenomenon and what changes will it bring to Earth?
Year There are two vernal equinoxes across the globe, and they occur when the sun coincides with the equator. at which point day and night are of equal length.
In fact, that’s where the term came from. “Equinox” comes from Latin and means “equal night”. By that time both day and night will last about 12 hours, as indicated by national geographic.
When is the autumnal equinox in 2023?
The autumnal equinox is just this year Monday, March 20th according to former astrophotographer Arturo Gomez of the Cerro Tolo Observatory.
“When they are 6:25 p.m. “There will be an astronomical phenomenon called the equinox that will give way to the fall season in all countries south of the equator,” he noted.
During that time, the Sun will be positioned along the Ecuadorian line and then point to the northern hemisphere where temperatures will begin to rise.
“Within a few weeks from this day, Nights are getting longer and daylight hours are getting shorter Added Gomez.Moreover, this phenomenon is April 1st the clock moves back one hour from 00:00 to 23:00.
Do equinoxes always occur on the same day?
Contrary to popular belief that equinoxes or changes of seasons occur specifically on the 21st, in reality can vary between 20 and 23 according to Gomez.
“that’s why Earth revolves around the sun in an ‘elliptical’ orbit , that is, in the shape of an egg outline, slightly elongated rather than circular. This causes the Earth to move parallel around the Sun at different speeds,” he explains.
It also occurs opposite to the vernal equinox The summer solstice marks the beginning of summer and winter on Earth These “occur when the sun reaches its maximum declination relative to the equator,” he points out. national geographic.
Here are the dates for each solstice and equinox in 2023:
March 20th – autumnal equinox
June 21st – winter solstice
September 23rd – spring equinox
December 22nd – summer solstice
Source: Biobiochile
