September 22nd is when the autumnal equinox begins and the night gains ground over the day as the position of the Sun and Moon change. It is this day on which day the ancient Greek myth of Persephone is based.
The Sun will close another cycle at the end of 2024 or beginning of 2025 and appears hyperactive, with an increased number of spots and geomagnetic storms.
On this day, the autumnal equinox marks the astronomical beginning of a new era. In the equinox day, the length of the hours of light equals the hours of darkness, with the Sun rising exactly in the East and setting perfectly in the West.
From this day on, the Northern Hemisphere will see the length of day continually shorten in favor of the night until the culmination of the winter solstice.
Image of the Moon
This year, the equinox will also be accompanied by the image of the Moon, which from September 21st begins a series of meetings with the Pleiades, a cluster of stars in the constellation of Taurus, and the planets Mars and Jupiter.
Precisely on the night between September 22nd and 23rd, the Moon will be between the Pleiades, which contain many stars visible even with the naked eye, and Jupiter. On the following nights, our satellite will be in conjunction first with the gas giant (Jupiter) and then with the Red Planet.
Popular culture places the autumnal equinox on September 23rd, but, due to the mismatch between the calendar year and the astronomical year, this can actually bring the date to September 22nd.
The position of the Sun
In the autumnal equinox, the Sun is positioned exactly above the equator. Astronomically, the position of the Sun at the September equinox corresponds to the so-called First Sign of Libra. On this day in ancient times, the Sun entered the constellation of Libra, while today the First Sign is in the constellation of Virgo.
This is due to the precession of the equinoxes, the very slow motion of the Earth that shifts the orientation of its axis of rotation. It is a bit like a spinning top that is about to stop.
This year, the September 22nd autumnal equinox starts exactly at 3:43 p.m. Eastern Europe Time.
The Ancient Greek myth of Persephone
The story of Persephone, the sweet daughter of Zeus and goddess of the harvest Demeter, who was kidnapped by Hades and later became the Queen of the Underworld, is known all over the world. It was actually how the ancient Greeks explained the change of the seasons—the day of the equinox—the eternal cycle of Nature’s death and rebirth.
After the kidnapping, Persephone’s mother was so distraught that she abandoned the harvest and thus led the world to famine. Zeus intervened and ordered Hades to deliver Persephone to her mother.
However, because Persephone had eaten a single pomegranate seed in the underworld, she could not be completely freed. Instead, she had to remain with Hades for one-third of the year, and she spent the other two-thirds with her mother on Earth.
The one-third of the year that Persephone stayed with Hades represents the barren fields of the summer before the Earth is revived by autumn rains.
