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Fall Officially Begins

Fall Officially Begins at 8:09pm local time on Wednesday, September 22 -- a good excuse to throw an impromptu evening party to celebrate the occasion. At equinox, the sun shines directly down somewhere on Earth's equator. At 8:09pm San Diego time this year, that equatorial spot lies in Indonesia. The autumn season will continue for another three months until the sun "moves" to its farthest southerly point, winter solstice, December 21.

Equal Days and Nights everywhere on Earth, 12 hours each, are only one noticeable consequence during the time of equinox, either autumnal or vernal (spring). Another consequence is that the sun at equinox always rises from a point on the horizon due east and later sets due west. You could calibrate a compass this way if you had access to a true (unobstructed) horizon. Another, subtle consequence is that at mid-latitudes like ours, morning and evening twilight periods are shortest during equinox. From San Diego, the duration of twilight this week is about 80 minutes; last June it was about 100 minutes.

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Fall Officially Begins at 8:09pm local time on Wednesday, September 22 -- a good excuse to throw an impromptu evening party to celebrate the occasion. At equinox, the sun shines directly down somewhere on Earth's equator. At 8:09pm San Diego time this year, that equatorial spot lies in Indonesia. The autumn season will continue for another three months until the sun "moves" to its farthest southerly point, winter solstice, December 21.

Equal Days and Nights everywhere on Earth, 12 hours each, are only one noticeable consequence during the time of equinox, either autumnal or vernal (spring). Another consequence is that the sun at equinox always rises from a point on the horizon due east and later sets due west. You could calibrate a compass this way if you had access to a true (unobstructed) horizon. Another, subtle consequence is that at mid-latitudes like ours, morning and evening twilight periods are shortest during equinox. From San Diego, the duration of twilight this week is about 80 minutes; last June it was about 100 minutes.

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Spider webs decorated with dew, Autumnal equinox is here already

We lost 20 minutes of twilight since June
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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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