2/29/2024 0 Comments Vernal equinox celebrationIn 2023, it lands on March 20th in the Northern Hemisphere and September 22nd in the Southern Hemisphere. The Spring Equinox falls on different days each year, although it is usually around the same time. It is also referred to by other names, such as Ostara equinox and the vernal equinox. In connection with the rhythms of the land, sea, and heavens, we can find a deeper connection to nature and the world around us, as well as our ancestors who discovered this unique day in the cycle of the earthen year.The spring equinox is the time of year when the sun lies directly above the equator, meaning that the length of day and night are equal. Other monuments like Stonehenge, Newgrange, built by the ancient Irish, Machu Picchu, and the Pyramid of Khafre, are also aligned with the equinox in unique ways. ![]() The shadows of this structure, built in the 8th–12th century AD, formed by the equinoctial sun evoke the image of the “Sun Serpent” slithering down the north side of the pyramid. Shadows cast on Kukulcán during Equinox at Chichen Itza LOOK: These 12 Stunning Photos Were Voted Best in the World For Depicting the Essence of SpringĬhichen Itza is one of the most famous monuments of Mesoamerica, and the great step Pyramid of Kulkulcan in Mexico is constructed in such exquisite connection to the equinox that it draws thousands of tourists on this particular day every year. Maybe it’s because it had a lot of relevance with their agricultural success, but great civilizations across the ages have enshrined the passage of the equinox in their architectural designs-often aligning their buildings’ foundations with certain moments during the solstice, equinox, or both. The movement of the sun, moon, and stars were closely observed and tracked by ancient peoples. Officially they take a vow not to wear socks until the next winter. ![]() ![]() The annual sock-burning events have became family-friendly parties, and generally go with eating oysters and other seafood. 2019 Sock Burning Festival – Virginia State Parks, CC licenseĮvery year on the vernal equinox Annapolis yacht clubs, the maritime museum, dockyard workers, and even rangers at the Virginia State Parks celebrate the Burning of the Socks festival, welcoming warm waters back the expansive Chesapeake Bay. Certainly for those who do their business with the sea, there is a tendency to adopt superstitions, but this also seems like a powerful ritual of optimism for warmer weather. In Maryland, among the boating community, it is a tradition to wear socks only during the winter. The real date, as Berman points out, of equal light and dark is a few days before the equinox. Also, the fact that the sun gives off a wide circle of light rather than a single point means there’s always going to be variations. However, Bob Berman, resident astronomer at the Old Farmers Almanac, notes this year that there is more sun than moon by a few minutes due to the earth’s atmosphere refracting the light, or bending it around the earth. The word equinox comes from Latin words which together mean “equal night” and one would be forgiven for assuming this means that the day and night period of the equinox is perfectly 50-50. It highlights the brilliance of ancient astronomers, who were able to note the subtle differences in the placement of the sun in the sky not just year by year, but century by century and in the case of the Mayan’s ‘long count’ cycle, millennia by millennia.ĬHECK OUT: One of Archaeology’s Great Mysteries Nearly Solved as Scientists Piece Together 2,000-Year-old Astronomy Calculator Demi-equi-nox These days the equinox arrives on the 20th of March, and there it will stay for all of our lives, and our children’s lives, and most of their children’s lives. For those growing up with the equinox on the 21st, you won’t see that again until the 22nd century. ![]() This is because we use the Gregorian calendar, and the placement of the equinox changes every other century.
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