The autumnal equinox is defined as the point at which the Sun appears to cross the celestial equator from north to south. The celestial equator is the circle in the celestial sphere halfway between the celestial poles. It can be thought of as the plane of Earth’s equator projected out onto the sphere. Another definition of fall is nights of below-freezing temperatures combined with days of temperatures below 70 degrees Fahrenheit. The word equinox means “equal night”; night and day are about the same length of time. The spring equinox is in late March. In addition to the (approximately) equal hours of daylight and darkness, the equinoxes are times when the Sun’s apparent motion undergoes the most rapid change. Around the time of the equinoxes, variations in the position on the horizon where the Sun rises and sets can be noticed from one day to the next by alert observers. See more about the September equinox at www.Almanac.com/fall
Daily Calendar for Sunday, September 22, 2024
Question of the Day
How can I get tree sap off my car?
Soak a rag in boiled linseed oil and leave it on the spot for several minutes. Then wash your car as usual.
Advice of the Day
For a happy marriage, never speak loudly to one another unless the house is on fire.
Home Hint of the Day
Rule of thumb, Part I: When you’re working with softwood lumber, the penny of the nail you use should be the same, in eighths of an inch, as the board you’re nailing. For a 1/2 inch (4/8 inch) board, a 4d nail is fine.
Word of the Day
Cat Nights
This term harks back to the days when people believed in witches. An old Irish legend says that a witch could turn into a cat and regain herself eight times, but on the ninth time, August 17, she couldn’t change back, hence the saying: “A cat has nine lives.” Because August is a “yowly” time for cats, this may have prompted the speculation about witches on the prowl in the first place.
Puzzle of the Day
In music I’m an instrument, Of sweet and solemn tone, But if I be transposed aright, I then become a moan. (What word fits the first clue, but when rearranged, fits the second?)
organ - groan
Born
- Anne of Cleves (fourth wife of King Henry VIII) –
- George Gordon Lord Byron (poet) –
- Paul Muni (actor) –
- John Houseman (actor) –
- George Balanchine (dancer/choreographer) –
- Joseph M. Valachi (criminal) –
- Tommy Lasorda (baseball player) –
- Shari Belafonte-Harper (actress) –
- Joan Jett (singer) –
- Scott Baio (actor) –
- Bonnie Hunt (actress) –
Died
- Nathan Hale (patriot) –
- Dan Rowan (comedian & actor) –
- Irving Berlin (songwriter) –
- George C. Scott (actor) –
- Joseph Kane (author of Famous First Facts, a collection of provable trivia) –
- Gordon Jump (actor) –
- Marcel Marceau (French mime ) –
- Eddie Fisher (singer) –
- Yogi Berra (baseball player, exactly 69 years following his 1946 MLB debut.) –
Events
- Position of U.S. Postmaster General established–
- Lincoln issued preliminary Emancipation Proclamation–
- Gene Tunney beat Jack Dempsey–
- Fiddler on the Roof opened on Broadway–
- The first Farm Aid concert took place–
- Turner Broadcasting System announced plans to merge with Time Warner–
- 3.3 earthquake near Rathdrum, Idaho–
Weather
- Hailstorm in Strawberry, Arizona. Five days after the storm, drifts of remaining hail were still 12 to 18 inches deep–
- Hurricane Esther circled Cape Cod, Massachusetts, for four days, bringing heavy rains and widespread flooding to Maine–