Autumn Begins (Northern Hemisphere)

Today, the Autumnal Equinox, marks the beginning of shorter days and longer nights.

This is when, because of the motion of the Earth around the Sun and because the Earth is tilted, the Sun crosses over the Earth's equator on its way South.

Table of Autumnal Equinoxes

Year	Date	Time (GMT)
2005	22 September	22:22
2006	23 September	04:02
2007	23 September	09:50
2008	22 September	15:43
2009	22 September	21:18
2010	23 September	03:08

The Autumn Equinox is one of the Four Quarter Days of the year. It marks a major mid-point of two of the seasons - even though Autumn officially starts on this day.

At the equinox, the Sun rises directly in the east and sets directly in the west. In the Northern Hemisphere, before the Autumnal Equinox, the Sun rises and sets more and more to the north, and afterwards, it rises and sets more and more to the South.