Spring Equinox 2026
—
—
—
Current Local Time
—The spring equinox in 2026 occurs on March 20 at 14:46 UTC, when day and night are approximately equal in length.
What Is the Spring Equinox?
The spring equinox (also called the vernal equinox) occurs on March 20, 2026 at 14:46 UTC, when the sun crosses the celestial equator moving south to north. On this exact moment, day and night are approximately equal in length everywhere on Earth — roughly 12 hours each. After this point, the Northern Hemisphere begins receiving more direct sunlight, and days grow longer than nights until the summer solstice.
Here's the fact that surprises most people: on the equinox, the sun rises due east and sets due west everywhere on Earth — not just at the equator, but in New York, London, Tokyo, and Sydney alike. This property holds because the sun sits exactly on the celestial equator at that moment, making its rising and setting points align with the cardinal directions regardless of your latitude. For the Southern Hemisphere, this date marks the autumn equinox — the beginning of shorter days and the approach of winter.
FAQ — Spring Equinox 2026
What date is the spring equinox in 2026?
The spring equinox falls on March 20, 2026 at 14:46 UTC. In US time zones, that's 10:46 AM EDT or 7:46 AM PDT. The exact date can shift by a day depending on your timezone — in some years it falls on March 19 or March 21. The equinox doesn't happen at the same clock time worldwide because it's a single astronomical moment.
Is the spring equinox the same day everywhere?
The equinox is a single moment in time (March 20, 14:46 UTC), but it falls on different calendar dates depending on your timezone. For most of the Americas and Europe, it's March 20. For eastern Asia and Australia, it may already be March 21. The astronomical event is simultaneous globally — only the local date and time differ.
Which hemisphere experiences spring on the equinox?
The March equinox marks spring in the Northern Hemisphere (New York, London, Tokyo) and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere (Sydney, Buenos Aires, Cape Town). The terms 'spring equinox' and 'autumn equinox' are hemisphere-dependent — both describe the same astronomical event. Always check which hemisphere you're in when reading about equinoxes.
Why does the sun rise due east on the equinox?
On the equinox, the sun sits exactly on the celestial equator — the projection of Earth's equator onto the sky. Because of this alignment, the sun's rising point aligns with true east and its setting point with true west, regardless of your latitude. This property holds for about 2-3 days around the equinox, not just the exact moment.
Does the equinox mean exactly 12 hours of day and night?
Not quite — day is slightly longer than 12 hours on the equinox due to atmospheric refraction and the fact that we define sunrise/sunset by the sun's upper edge, not its center. Most locations get about 12 hours and 7 minutes of daylight on the equinox. The sun appears to rise a few minutes before it geometrically clears the horizon and sets a few minutes after it geometrically crosses it.
How does the equinox affect day length going forward?
After the spring equinox, the Northern Hemisphere gains daylight rapidly — about 2-3 minutes per day around the equinox. By the summer solstice in June, locations at 40°N have gained roughly 5+ hours of daylight compared to the equinox. In the Southern Hemisphere, the opposite happens: days shorten as winter approaches.