BellaOnline Forums Education Astronomy The Equinox is almost here

Northern hemisphere autumn begins on the September equinox, the day the Sun crosses the celestial equator. Equinoxes were celebrated by the earliest known civilizations, and still are in many places. One of the biggest celebrations is the Chinese Moon Festival. A traditional Chinese palace or garden has a moon-watching pavilion.

Autumnal Equinox

It's the Milky Way on an autumn night The photo was taken by a Brooklyn, New York photographer at Delaware Water Gap Campground.

Fall is in the air - beautiful photo.

For most people in the north, if you look overhead on the night of the autumn equinox, the constellation Cygnus should be prominent.

Cygnus the Swan
Seduction and supergiants, a beautiful blue and amber double star, vast explosions, a giant cloud that looks like North America. Where does myth end and astronomy begin? Here is a tour of some of the highlights of the constellation Cygnus the swan.

The Sun crossed the celestial equator at 10.02 PM (UTC) yesterday, September 22. Astronomically, autumn has begun in the northern hemisphere and spring has begun in the southern hemisphere.

It's official. In the northern hemisphere, autumn has arrived. In this picture, we see the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. The Sun sets directly above the water feature, "The River of Life", on both the spring and fall equinoxes.