Daily Archives: September 23, 2019

Celebrating Eight Years of Writing about Weather and Climate

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It is hard to believe, but today marks the eighth anniversary of The Weather Gamut.

Initially begun as a way to deepen and share my knowledge about weather and climate change, this blog has allowed me to expand on my interests and concerns in ways that I never thought possible. This past year, I gave a variety of presentations on creative climate communication and was invited to share my climate-related artwork in several exhibitions around the world.

Producing this blog has been an interesting journey that has taught me a great deal about the science of weather and climate as well as the art of writing. It has also put me in touch with many wonderful people working in this fascinating field. I am grateful for all their support and encouragement.

As always, thank you for reading!

The Science Behind the Autumnal Equinox

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Today is the Autumnal Equinox, the first day of fall in the northern hemisphere. The new season officially began at 7:50 UTC, which is 3:50 AM Eastern Daylight Time.

The astronomical seasons, as opposed to the meteorological seasons, are a product of Earth’s axial tilt – a 23.5° angle – and the movement of the planet around the sun. During the autumn months, the Earth’s axis is tilted neither toward nor away from the sun. This position distributes the sun’s energy equally between the northern and southern hemispheres.

Since the summer solstice in June, the arc of the sun’s apparent daily passage across the sky has been sinking and daylight hours have been decreasing. Today, the sun appears directly overhead at the equator and we have approximately equal hours of day and night. The word “equinox” is derived from Latin and means “equal night”.

Transitioning from summer to winter, autumn is also a season of falling temperatures. According to NOAA, the average high temperature in most US cities drops about 10°F between September and October.

Earth’s solstices and equinoxes. Image Credit: NASA