When is it the first day of Autumn in 2022?

It’s been a long hot summer in 2022, that’s for sure.

With a heatwave in July, another in August and plenty of warm temperatures in between, many of us will be looking forward to the chillier weather autumn time typically brings.

Indeed, many will be hoping for rainfall, too, as hosepipe bans remain in force in parts of the UK.

Soon, the nights will draw in and the leaves will turn golden – surefire signs that autumn is upon us.

But just when does the season actually start? We take a look at when the ‘real’ first day of autumn is, and how it’s calculated.

When does autumn 2022 start?

There are two different dates that mark the beginning of autumn.

One is the astronomical autumn date, measured by the earth’s orbit around the sun, while the other is meteorological autumn.

Using the astronomical date, autumn begins on Friday, September 23 and ends on Wednesday, December 21, when it gives way to winter.

The astronomical calendar determines the seasons due to the 23.5-degree tilt of the Earth’s axis in relation to its orbit around the Sun.

The autumn equinox is another way of referring to the start of the season, as it is when the Earth’s surface experiences 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness across one day.

Spring also has its own equinox based on the Earth’s axis and sun rotation, marking the start of the season. The winter and summer solstices work in a similar way.

However, if you’re going by the meteorological system, then the start of autumn always falls on September 1 and ends on November 30.

Winter then runs from December 1 to February 28, spring from March 1 to May 31 and summer from June 1 to August 31.

This was decided by splitting the Gregorian calendar into the four seasons we know as spring, summer, autumn, and winter.

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