Every New Yorker is entitled to their own personal indicator of springtime’s arrival: the blooming of the nearest cherry blossom, the winding of the clock, the first joyous moment it feels appropriate to hit play on that Jonathan Richman song.
Astronomically speaking, the first day of spring starts Monday afternoon, at 5:24 p.m. That’s when the sun passes directly above the equator, cutting the day and night into nearly equal halves.
The equinox marks the start of the Persian New Year, the beginning of the countdown to Easter, and the lesser-known of two Earth Days. From here on out, the Northern Hemisphere will begin tilting toward the sun, bringing longer and warmer days.
With the sun riding a bit higher in the sky, it’s also a good time to stop thinking about how little snow we got this winter, and begin considering what the next few months will hold.
Keeping with recent weather patterns, the season is expected to bring hotter than average temperatures to the East Coast, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. At the same time, the same models show a slightly above average chance of more precipitation than usual this spring.
“There's a better chance right now that we'll have above normal temperatures for the spring,” said James Tomasini, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service. “And a slightly better chance that we'll have above normal precipitation.”
All of that bears out going into the work week: expect temperatures in the mid to upper 50s on Monday and Tuesday, followed by a chance of rain on Wednesday.
