DateAlmanac

How many days until spring?

179 days

Spring begins at the March equinox, Saturday, March 20, 2027 at 4:24 PM Eastern Time. Counted from today, Tuesday, September 22, 2026.

Begins
Saturday
Ends
Sunday, June 20
Season length
93 days
Meteorological start
March 1

Astronomical — the solstices and equinoxes

Saturday, March 20, 2027

Tied to the Earth's tilt, so the date shifts a day or two each year. This is the definition almanacs and calendars use.

Meteorological — whole calendar months

Monday, March 1, 2027160 days away

Fixed every year, so climate records can be compared like for like. This is the definition weather services use, and it is 19 days earlier.

Why the seasons are not equal

Tropic of Cancer23.4° NEquatorTropic of Capricorn23.4° SMarch 20June 21September 23December 21JFMAMJJASOND
Where the sun stands overhead through 2027. It reaches the Tropic of Cancer at the June solstice, Monday, June 21, 2027, and the Tropic of Capricorn at the December solstice, Tuesday, December 21, 2027. The two crossings of the equator are the equinoxes. The shaded half is the northern summer — the swing between the tropics is the Earth’s axial tilt of 23.4°, and it is the whole reason seasons exist.

The four seasons from here

SeasonBeginsLengthDays away
FallSeptember 22, 202690 days0
WinterDecember 21, 202689 days90
SpringMarch 20, 202793 days179
SummerJune 21, 202794 days272

About spring

Astronomical spring runs from Saturday, March 20, 2027 to Sunday, June 20, 2027, which is 93 days. The seasons are not equal lengths: the Earth’s orbit is an ellipse and it moves slowest near aphelion in early July, so it spends several days longer covering the half of its orbit between the March and September equinoxes. Northern spring and summer are the long ones.

Meteorological spring starts on March 1 and always covers three whole months. Weather services use it because a season of fixed length can be compared year to year; almanacs and calendars use the astronomical one. Neither is wrong — they answer different questions, which is why “the first day of spring” has two defensible answers.

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