Last (Astronomical) Night of Summer

Explanations and observations about the above:

Yes, I’m showing my boreal and Western Hemisphere chauvinism with the above headline.

The official time for the start of autumn 2005 in these parts is 3:23 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time.

That’s 5:23 p.m. in Chicago and 6:23 p.m. in New York City, proud capitals of the Infospigot media empire. And 10:23 p.m. in London, a city unvisited by your correspondent.

For Tokyo, an outpost of the Greater Infospigot Co-Prosperity Sphere, that’s 7:23 a.m. Friday, the 23rd (the Autumnal Equinox is a national holiday there). That means the last sundown of summer falls on the 22nd, about three hours from now (5:38 p.m., Japan Standard Time; since Japan declines to spring forward or fall back, its already experiencing early sunset blues.)

And since everything is upside down and backwards on the other side of the Equator — my first big thrill visiting Australia was the realization that the reason Orion looked different was he was standing on his head — spring begins at 7:23 p.m. tomorrow in Buenos Aires, 12:23 a.m. (the 23rd) in Cape Town, and 8:23 a.m. (the 23rd) in Sydney.

3 Replies to “Last (Astronomical) Night of Summer”

  1. Hey Brekke. I’ve had it with you and your science. And I suggest you get your mind right. Autumn arrives when Reverend Pat says it does! Why won’t you just shut up and BELIEVE?

  2. I love this kind of stuff. It is a beautiful evening here in NYC, very late summer-early autumn kind of stuff. It reminds me of World Series weather. I also think about springtime in Sydney and Canberra. That would be a good one to see. Later.

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