WEST MICHIGAN — Yep…it’s that time of year! Summer is officially gone, and fall (or the autumnal equinox as it’s called) is here…arriving at 3:50 A.M. Monday. But what exactly does it mean? Let’s have a review of science 101.
The start of our fall here in the northern hemisphere, also means the exact opposite for our neighbors in the southern hemisphere. It’s the start of their spring. The arrival time of fall signifies the exact time when the sun is directly overhead of the equator, on its trek back down to the south to start the spring for those folks. At one point, our daylight hours were more than 15 hours in length, now that’s been cut to about 12 hours of daylight, and 12 hours of night. Hence the term equinox, meaning equal days and equal nights.
Michigan will really start losing daylight fast…on the order of about three to four minutes each day now. That trend will continue until about December 21st or so, the shortest day of the year with only about eight to nine hours or actual daylight.
Fall is a superb time in West Michigan! It’s apple season, plus the color changes can be quite amazing once the leaves start turning. You can get the complete forecast at www.fox17online.com/weather.
