Spring

If it’s been a nasty winter where you are, then you have our sympathy. On the bright side, though, it’s almost over - spring arrives in the northern hemisphere early tomorrow.

Now that doesn’t mean the weather conditions will change overnight. The shift of the seasons is a long, slow process, not something that happens with the flip of a switch. It’s governed by the leisurely progression of the Sun across the sky, which in turn is the result of the changing angle between the Sun and Earth’s poles.

At the start of spring - the vernal equinox - the Sun crosses the equator from south to north. Neither pole dips toward the Sun, so the entire planet will see roughly equal amounts of daylight and darkness.

Over the next three months, though, as Earth continues in its orbit around the Sun, the north pole will gradually dip toward the Sun. That will bring longer, warmer days to the northern hemisphere, and shorter, cooler ones to the southern hemisphere. It’ll also bring non-stop sunshine t