Countdown to
Spring Equinox
Light and dark, held in balance
Today is Spring Equinox.
138 days until Spring Equinox, on Saturday, March 20, 2027.
Spring Equinox is Saturday, March 20, 2027. Happens the March (spring) equinox (computed astronomically, in UT).
The Spring Equinox is the hinge of the year in the Northern Hemisphere — the moment winter’s long nights start giving way to lengthening days. Around March 20, the sun crosses the celestial equator heading north, standing directly overhead at the equator and dividing daylight and darkness almost evenly across the globe. It marks the astronomical start of spring, and cultures around the world have built calendars, festivals, and monuments around it.
A moment written in the sky
“Equinox” comes from the Latin aequus, meaning equal, and nox, meaning night — a nod to the near-even split of light and dark. Long before the word existed, ancient peoples tracked this turning point with striking precision. Neolithic builders aligned stone monuments to the equinox sunrise, and Maya architects designed El Castillo at Chichen Itza so that, around the equinox, the afternoon sun sculpts a shadow serpent gliding down its northern staircase.
The date isn’t fixed. Because Earth takes about 365.25 days to orbit the sun, the equinox drifts by roughly six hours each year and snaps back with every leap day, landing on March 19, 20, or 21. The moment also anchors other calendars: the date of Easter is calculated from a fixed ecclesiastical equinox of March 21, and the Persian New Year, Nowruz, begins at the exact astronomical instant the equinox occurs.
A timezone note. The equinox is a single instant, and the date shown here is its date in Universal Time (UT). When that instant falls within a few hours of midnight UT, the local calendar date differs: in the Americas it can still be the evening of the previous day, while in East Asia and Australia it can already be the next day. If a printed calendar and this page disagree by a day, that is almost always why.
How the equinox is marked
For much of the world, the March equinox is simply the first day of spring — a cue to open windows, start seedlings, and shake off winter. Elsewhere it carries deeper ceremony. Nowruz, celebrated by more than 300 million people across Iran, Central Asia, and the diaspora, opens with a symbolic Haft-Seen table and days of visiting family. In Japan, Vernal Equinox Day is a national holiday set aside for honoring ancestors and welcoming the season.
The equinox also brings a quieter, purely astronomical marker: the sun rises due east and sets due west almost everywhere on Earth, a brief moment of planetary symmetry shared by every latitude. Whether you greet it with a garden, a feast, or just a longer evening walk, the Spring Equinox is the calendar’s quiet promise that the light is coming back.
🌸 Fun facts about Spring Equinox
- Despite the name, day and night aren't exactly equal on the equinox — because the atmosphere bends sunlight and the sun is measured from its upper edge, the true 12-hour split, called the equilux, falls a few days earlier.
- On the equinox the sun rises due east and sets due west for observers nearly everywhere on Earth, regardless of their latitude.
- Nowruz, the Persian New Year celebrated by more than 300 million people, is timed to the exact astronomical moment of the March equinox.
- At Chichen Itza in Mexico, the late-afternoon sun casts a shadow shaped like a serpent slithering down the staircase of the El Castillo pyramid around the equinox.
- The equinox is an instant, not a whole day — it is the precise moment the sun crosses the celestial equator heading north.
Upcoming Spring Equinox dates
| Date | Days away |
|---|---|
| 138 days | |
| 504 days | |
| 869 days | |
| 1,234 days | |
| 1,599 days |
How people mark Spring Equinox
- Celebrating Nowruz, the Persian New Year
- Gathering at ancient sites to watch the equinox sunrise
- Observing Japan's Vernal Equinox Day
- Spring cleaning and welcoming longer days
- Starting seeds and preparing gardens
- Marking the astronomical first day of spring
Frequently asked
What day is the Spring Equinox?
The March, or spring, equinox falls around March 20 each year, occasionally landing on March 19 or 21. It marks the moment the sun crosses the celestial equator heading north, beginning astronomical spring in the Northern Hemisphere.
Are day and night really equal on the equinox?
Almost, but not precisely. Because Earth's atmosphere refracts sunlight and sunrise is measured from the sun's upper edge, daylight runs slightly longer; the true 12-hour day, the equilux, occurs a few days before the March equinox.
Is the Spring Equinox the same everywhere in the world?
The astronomical moment happens simultaneously worldwide, but its meaning flips by hemisphere. The March equinox brings spring to the Northern Hemisphere and autumn to the Southern Hemisphere at the same time.
Why does the equinox date change from year to year?
A calendar year isn't a whole number of days, so the equinox drifts by roughly six hours annually and resets with each leap year. That is why it can fall on March 19, 20, or 21.