Ronald Le Klinger age 13 of Houston Texas

What does the word equinox mean?

The word equinox comes from two Latin words. Strictly speaking it means equal‑night, It refers to the time when day and night all over the world are of equal length. North of the equator, we are used to the days growing loner, the nights shorter, soon after the New Year. South of the equator, the opposite happens. Our longest day and shortest night of the year happens towards the end of June. Then the days grow shorter again and the nights longer

At the north pole, the summer days grow so long that the sun does not set at all. The summer is one long period of daylight with the sun making circles in the sky but not sinking below the horizon. While this is happening tho south pole is having a, long period of darkness in which the sun does not rise at all.

These two opposite situations begin to change around midsummer. The sun dips lower and lower in the northern sky until it sets for a short time each day. It begins to peep up in the south polar region. Our days get shorter or nights longer. Finally comes a time when day and night are equal all over the world. This is the equinox. The vernal or. Spring Equinox happens around March 21. After that time, the process is reversed. Our days grow shorter and the days below the equator grow longer. This is reversed around September 23 with the Autumnal Equinox.