Well - we can say goodbye to summer today.

https://www.twinkl.com.au/event/autumn-australia-2024


When is the 1st day of autumn in Australia?

Autumn, also known in some parts of the world as Fall, officially starts when the autumn equinox occurs. The autumn equinox in the Southern Hemisphere is also known as the March equinox. It tends to fall in March, and in 2024 the autumn equinox is 20th March. This is when autumn 2024 officially starts in the Southern Hemisphere. So, that means that the 1st day of autumn in Australia this year will officially be the 20th of March.

Of course, just because the 20th of March is officially the 1st day of autumn in Australia, it doesn't mean that the leaves will go brown overnight and the temperature will drop suddenly from one day to the next. There will likely be signs of autumn long before the official 1st day of autumn in Australia, so why not have some fun with your students by keeping an eye out for them? You could even keep a journal of things you spot so that you can track the changes as they happen!
What is an equinox?

Equinoxes and solstices are the signal of seasons changing, the shift from summer to winter and vice versa. The equinox is also the only time in the year when the Earth isn’t tilted away from or toward the sun – creating a near equal amount of daylight and night at all latitudes. After the March equinox, the Southern Hemisphere will begin to have shorter days, while the Western Hemisphere will start having longer days.

This means that in Australia, and other countries in the Southern Hemisphere, autumn starts in March. But for countries in the Western Hemisphere, March is the start of spring!

Jasin wrote on Mar 20^th, 2024 at 8:03am:



In Melbourne we went from 30 yesterday down to 18 today.
Right now it's 15 and no more hot days expected.

AusGeoff wrote on Mar 20^th, 2024 at 9:13am:



Yes when people say that the 1st March is the end of summer they are dead wrong.
That's why March can have such hot weather.
We just had a couple of 3 day or more heatwaves.

Bobby. wrote on Mar 20^th, 2024 at 1:01pm:


Our calendar is just an abstract concept.

There's no such thing as 1 March or 14 July, etc.

But anyway, when it comes to seasons, the Nyoongar calendar is more realistic: see here.

There are six seasons.

Setanta wrote on Mar 20^th, 2024 at 5:52pm:


Correct.

Jasin wrote on Mar 20^th, 2024 at 3:33pm:



As are many people.
The seasons come from astronomical events not our calendar.

greggerypeccary wrote on Mar 20^th, 2024 at 7:25pm:


What astronomical events does the Noongar calendar use to make it more realistic rather than an abstract concept?

Jasin wrote on Mar 20^th, 2024 at 7:33pm:


Sure and it's not a pic per month, every day has a pic and Gregg ejaculates everywhere on seeing them and can't help but share his joy with us, his friends here on ozpolitic.