Autumn Begins
Autumn Begins marks the transition from summer to winter, starting around September 21 in the Northern Hemisphere, coinciding with the autumnal equinox. This astronomical event occurs when the Sun crosses the celestial equator, creating nearly equal lengths of day and night. Historically, the equinoxes and solstices are significant in defining the seasons, with autumn symbolically linked to the zodiac sign of Libra, although precession has shifted the equinox into Virgo over centuries. This season is characterized by shorter days and a gradual decrease in temperatures, influenced by the tilt of the Earth's axis and its elliptical orbit around the Sun.
Autumn is traditionally associated with harvest time, making it vital for agricultural societies, and has inspired rich folklore, mythology, and art. In various cultures, it is celebrated for its bounty, with illustrations of harvesting and vintage processes evident in artistic representations, such as those found in French cathedrals. The Southern Hemisphere experiences autumn oppositely, beginning around March 21. Overall, Autumn Begins signifies not only a climatic shift but also a cultural and historical moment that resonates with themes of abundance and change.
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Autumn Begins
In the United States and the north temperate zones generally, autumn begins on approximately September 21 of every year. Astronomically, the start of the third season of the year, which comes between summer and winter, can be pinpointed precisely. The ecliptic, the plane in which the Sun appears to revolve about the Earth and in which the Earth actually revolves about the Sun, is divided into four 90-degree sections. Each of these sections commences with a specific point: two equinoxes and two solstices. Autumn starts at the autumnal equinox (Latin aequinoctium from aequus meaning "equal" and nox meaning "night") situated halfway between the summer solstice, the start of summer and the winter solstice, the start of winter. The period from the autumnal equinox to the winter solstice has been designated the season of autumn.
Autumn is also said to begin when the Sun appears to reach the zodiac sign of Libra, the scales. That statement is somewhat misleading today since precession, that is the backward movement of the equinoctial points, has caused a retrograde motion of 30 degrees over the past 2,000 years. Thus the autumnal equinox, which used to be found in Libra, is presently in the sign of Virgo the virgin. Only at the completion of a 25,800-year cycle will the autumnal equinox once more be located in Libra.
It is thought that Libra received its designation as "the scales" from the "balancing" or equality of day and night that occurs at the equinoxes, vernal as well as autumnal. Around September 23, the Sun appears to reach the intersection of the celestial equator and the ecliptic, having then a celestial longitude of 180 degrees and a declination of 0 degrees. Its rays extend from the North to the South Pole.
During the season of autumn, the Sun, having crossed the celestial equator from north to south, progresses along the ecliptic south of it. The Sun's south declination constantly increases. At the winter solstice, when the Sun is said to enter the zodiac sign of Capricorn, it reaches a longitude of 270 degrees and its maximum south declination of minus 23 degrees 27 minutes. Autumn then ends.
Seasonal differences, especially the regular fluctuations in weather, are the result of the tilt of the Earth's axis (23 and a half degrees) as well as of the elliptical nature of its revolution around the Sun. When the North Pole points directly toward the Sun at the summer solstice, the amount of solar radiation absorbed daily by the surface and atmosphere of the Earth is high. Consequently, temperatures are also high. By the winter solstice, when the North Pole inclines away from the Sun, opposite conditions prevail. Like spring, autumn is therefore a transitional period between the extremes of summer and winter. In the Southern Hemisphere the seasons are reversed, since the South Pole moves in the opposite direction from the North Pole. There, astronomical autumn begins around March 21 and ends around June 21.
Autumn has always played an important role in the life of the farmer. As the period of harvest, vintage, and fruit gathering, it has left an imprint not only on day-to-day living but also on the development of folklore, mythology, and art. The intimate intertwining of art and nature in the Western world can be seen in the detailed depictions of the autumn months in the French cathedrals. At Reims, for example, in one of the carved stone scenes portraying the calendar year, fermenting wine is being transferred from vats to casks. The season itself was often personified in Western art as a female figure bearing grapes.
Bibliography
Aveni, Anthony F. The Book of the Year: A Brief History of Our Seasonal Holidays. Oxford UP, 2004.
Hobbs, Bernie. "Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter—Why Do We Have Seasons?" ABC News, 31 Aug. 2017,www.abc.net.au/news/science/2017-09-01/seasons-and-their-changes-explained/8858776. Accessed 1 May 2024.
Kammen, Michael G. A Time to Every Purpose: The Four Seasons in American Culture. U of North Carolina P, 2004.
Redd, Nola Taylor. "Autumn: The Cooling-Off Season." Live Science, 11 Mar. 2022, www.livescience.com/24476-autumn.html. Accessed 1 May 2024.
Wickman, Forrest. "Why Is Autumn the Only Season With Two Names?" Slate, 22 Sept. 2018, slate.com/culture/2018/09/why-does-autumn-have-two-names-how-the-third-season-became-both-autumn-and-fall.html. Accessed 1 May 2024.