This March newsletter is about the day known as the Vernal Equinox.  Who has heard of this?  In Canada and the rest of the northern hemisphere, the first day of the spring season is the day of the year when the Sun crosses the celestial equator moving northward, on March 20th or 21st.  “As the Earth travels around the Sun in its orbit, the north-south position of the Sun changes over the course of the year because of the changing orientation of the Earth’s tilted rotation axis.  The dates of maximum tilt of the Earth’s equator correspond to the Summer Solstice and Winter Solstice, and the dates of zero tilt to the Vernal Equinox and the Autumnal Equinox.  The reason for these changes has to do with the Earth’s yearly trip around the sun.  For part of the year the Earth’s North Pole points away from the sun and part of the time toward it.  This is what causes our seasons.  When the North pole points toward the sun, the sun’s rays hit the northern half of the world more directly.  That means it is warmer and we have summer.”  So there you have it, a lesson in the science behind what causes the seasons.

My free challenging picapix puzzle for the month reminds me of celestial bodies rotating around the sun.  I hope you will enjoy solving #16. Big Bang Theory.  Please share with other puzzlers in your life.  If you are a Twitter fan, I would love to connect.

Sincerely,

Diane Baher