“You’re wrong Mr. Weatherman…my calendar says Spring begins on March 20th!”
What you heard me say this morning was meteorological Spring begins today, March 1st. No, you won’t see it on your calendar because it’s a disambiguation of (mostly) inside weather geek-speak.
In other words we, as TV weather people, are more than tired of talking about cold and snow…so we look at March 1st being the beginning of an overal pattern change trending toward longer days…thus, warmer times ahead.
Plus…it’s puts us all in a good mood!
Yes, the vernal equinox is 20 days away (March 20th, 6:21pm CT). That is the astronomical beginning of Spring when the earth tilts toward the sun putting direct sunlight over the equator. On that day there will be a full 12 hours of daylight.
For Bowling Green and South Central Kentucky, more sunshine means temperatures will be on a general climb upward. Average high temperature at the beginning of March is 54° but by the end of March and the start of April will warm to 65°.
And oh…don’t forget, Daylight Saving Time begins one week before the official start of Spring. Sunday, March 13th at 2am is when we set our clocks UP one hour (Spring forward). That’s also a good time to check the batteries in your smoke and carbon detectors and your weather radios.
So, hang tough cookie…better days are ahead!
Chris Allen 