Why are Spring and Summer longer than Autumn and Winter?

The earth's orbit around the sun is elliptical— as it happens, the earth is closest to the sun in early January. So it takes it less time to run from the September equinox thru (northern-hemisphere) autumn and winter to the March equinox— the earth moves a bit faster around that half of the ellipse. read more

So it takes it less time to run from the September equinox thru (northern-hemisphere) autumn and winter to the March equinox— the earth moves a bit faster around that half of the ellipse. Meeus says in the year 1246 the earth was closest to the sun at the December solstice, so fall and winter were then the same length. read more

Summer and winter. Australia has summer at the end of the year when the southern hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun. In summer, days are longer because more hours are spent facing the Sun. And they're hotter because we're facing the Sun more head-on — so we get hit by more rays of sunlight than if we were on an angle. read more

The differences between spring and autumn include temperature, time of year and length of day. Spring is the season that happens after winter, while autumn is the season that happens after summer. The physical appearance of spring and autumn are different as well, as trees bloom in spring and turn in autumn. read more