Wed Mar 19 09:40:00 UTC 2025: ## Spring Equinox Arrives Thursday: Equal Day and Night Mark Season’s Start
**Washington, D.C.** – Spring officially arrives in the Northern Hemisphere this Thursday, March 20th, at 5:01 a.m. EST, marking the vernal equinox. This astronomical event, which occurs when the sun crosses the Earth’s equator, brings nearly equal amounts of daylight and darkness across all latitudes. The opposite occurs in the Southern Hemisphere, where the autumnal equinox signals the beginning of fall.
The vernal equinox signifies the start of longer days in the Northern Hemisphere as the Earth’s tilt increasingly faces the sun, culminating in the summer solstice on June 20th. This year’s spring arrives just days after the implementation of Daylight Saving Time on March 9th.
First Piper 