This morning it looked as if someone had scribbled across the sky.  Unlike last Wednesday’s autumn equinox, today was the equilux when there were equal hours of light and dark.  The sun is actually visible when it is just below the horizon, as Earth’s atmosphere refracts the sun’s rays and bends them in an arc over the horizon so it can be seen before the sun’s edge reaches the horizon causing the daylight to be longer than 12 hours as well.  At the autumn equinox the day is a bit longer at higher latitudes than at the equator because it takes the sun longer to rise and set the closer at the poles. On the equator day length is about 12 hours and 6 minutes whereas it is about 12 hours and 16 minutes at 60 degrees north. So on the autumn equinox, the length of day will vary a little depending on the latitude but the nights will definitely be getting longer than the days now.

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