Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, March 21, 1991                   TAG: 9103210077
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: E-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Tammy Poole
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

EQUINOX MARKED BEGINNING OF SPRING

A: Spring began Wednesday night at 10:02 p.m. - the moment the sun passed directly above the Earth's equator. The day this event occurs is called the vernal equinox. The sun will pass over the equator in September, going south, which will be the autumnal equinox and mark the beginning of Fall.

Because the Earth is tilted with respect to its path around the Sun, different parts of the Earth receive different amounts of sunlight during the year.

For example, between late September and late March, Earth's Northern Hemisphere is tilted away from the Sun. It is winter in the north, but below the equator, it is summer. This is defined, not by weather, but the greater amount of daylight in summer and the smaller amount in winter.

Around the times of change from longer days to shorter days and vice versa, daylight hours are equal to nighttime hours. These are called the equinoxes.

This information is from the 1991 Universal Almanac