By our correspondent
ISLAMABAD: March 20 marks the unique astronomical event when day and night become nearly equal in length across most parts of the world, including Pakistan, as the Spring Equinox occurs. The Vernal Equinox will begin at 7:46pm Pakistan Standard Time, the moment when the Sun crosses directly over the celestial equator while moving northward, resulting in approximately 12 hours each of daylight and darkness in most regions.
The equator is an imaginary line drawn exactly midway on the world map, dividing the planet into two equal halves north and south. During the equinox, because the Sun sits directly above the equator, sunlight reaches virtually every location on Earth in nearly equal measure. On this day, the Sun rises exactly in the east and sets exactly in the west, making it a significant astronomical event. A similar phenomenon occurs in September during the Autumnal Equinox, when the Sun crosses the equator moving from the northern hemisphere to the southern hemisphere.
