Pardon the double post, but it's been over a week!

Welcome to fall (or spring)!

The sun stands over the earth's equator at 0309 GMT on Sept. 23, marking the September equinox. That's this evening for North America (10:09 pm DST in my timezone).

At that time, autumn begins in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern. Day and night are of roughly equal length around the world, giving us the word "equinox" (Latin aequus equal + nox night).

Our weather is definitely cooling from the heat of summer (though just the other night it was still 77F/25C at 10 pm, extremely unusual this late in the season). Some of the trees, especially the maples, are beginning to show color.

And up to 4 inches (10 cm) of rain is in the forecast for the next 48 hours, also unusual for this time of year.

Look up as night falls the next couple days, as the big bright Harvest (full) Moon closes in on bright Jupiter. Both are roughly opposite the sun tomorrow, visible all night. Uranus is just north of Jupiter, easily spotted in binoculars, but the bright Moon nearby may hinder the view.

wow, the weather here in NH has been completely crazy! this past week it was really cold, but then today it is 80 degrees!
the nights have been cold but the days cool until today.....

Happy Harvest Moon Day! (Actually, I read it's officially full at 5:17 EDT tomorrow morning. )

For a couple of weeks now, we have been thoroughly enjoying very comfortable temperatures, hovering around 17C/nearly 63F, with nighttime lows even hitting the high single digits (in Celsius) periodically. 'Tis glorious! And the trees and bushes are beginning to blush their colours around the tips more vigorously now, particularly the maples, 'though there is long way to go yet before they have peaked. Some of my favourite greenery, the sumac, is turning its brilliant red. In our area, at least, it often lines the highways and countryside roads. So lovely.

We are also experiencing a nice combination of sunshine and precipitation, making everything lush.

Yesterday, however, was the exception to the coolness. A blip on September's calendar, the high rocketed to nearly 30C/86F and, though, mostly sunny, the air eemed thick and heavy, making me realize how much I don't miss the summer months. Today and tomorrow are still above average, in the early 20sC/70sF, and then—hurrah!—dropping cooler on the weekend to mid-teensC/60F for daytime highs.

Last night a few friends and I went on a long bike ride and, riding home around 10:30 p.m. (EDT), it was a stunning sight to see the nearly-full moon shining behind light wool-like clouds, with impressively bright Jupiter not too far away. I was hoping I wouldn't have an accident, because I couldn't help having to keep on gazing up at the beautiful sight.

And, I managed to glimpse Uranus in my binoculars the other night. Even though it looked like any other rather dim star, just knowing it was that blue-tinged, rather elusive, planet, made all the difference.

And as stargazer mentioned, autumn officially arrives in the northern hemisphere tonight (11:09 in my timezone, EDT). I'm staying up to celebrate, and hope the clouds will clear from the rain today early enough this evening to see that full Harvest Moon rise, and the giant Jupiter, hanging brightly below.

Happy Spring, to those in the Southern Hemisphere!

EDIT: Just got in from my evening walk, and I was thrilled that the skies have cleared, allowing the full moon to cast such cool moon shadows, with Jupiter below it, as on an invisible string, like a celestial earring. Gorgeous! I could watch that all night—better than any TV show. *is in awe*

This week was so wet! Full of rains and thunders every noon and afternoon. Miss the sun!

It has been raining here in El Paso since 2am, which unfortunately has kept me awake. It is one of our rare light rains. Usually our rains are in the form of being able to count individual drops or we get absolutely everything at once. This has been a light rain and the clouds look like they won't let up for a while.

Denver has been breaking records all week in the mid-upper 90's. At this point of September, those temps are quite rare.

My sister, in Chennai India, was totally shocked as the winter coats are being pulled out. The temperatures are dropping into the upper 90's there. But when you are on the Indian Ocean Coast very close to the equator, where temps average 115+ with 98% humidity, I'd consider 99 to be a cold front.

*arrives paddling a kayak*

I guess I won't be visiting India anytime soon, with conditions like that.

Flood watches have been posted for most of Minnesota and Wisconsin, and the governor of the Badger State has declared a state of emergency in some counties southeast of here due to flash flooding. Some parts of Minnesota, like Owatonna and nearby cities, are flooded, with over 8 inches (20 cm) of rain since yesterday.

We've received several inches of rain - it's been raining constantly, and often heavily, since yesterday, with more to come tonight - but this area is high enough that it shouldn't flood (despite our proximity to the Mississippi River).

All this rain has ruled out observations of Jupiter near the Harvest Moon. But jo, I'm glad you got to see them, along with Uranus, and I enjoyed your descriptive language (like trees "blushing their colours," Jupiter "like a celestial earring" and the Moon shining behind wool-like clouds). Very nice!

Little rain only came a while ago. Good thing today is sunny, since we had a week full of rain.

We have a clear sky this morning, which is really good. I am leaving for the mountains about 2 1/2 hours from El Paso and good weather is really good for driving. Especially when you jump from 4,000ft in elevation to over 8,000ft. Plus, I hope it didn't rain up there yesterday, because tonight we have a bon fire schedules and it should already be built for us when we get there. Wet wood doesn't burn very well as we found out last year.

Lovely crisp fall weather....I love the contrast of a clear blue sky and the orange/yellow/red foliage. The breeze rustles the leaves on our long winding driveway, making it look like Rivendell. Perfect for day-dreaming.

I feel like I'm writing a poem here...

It's a windy, cloudy gloomy day, every once in a while raining, but not right now. A perfect day for sitting inside a warm cheery house with a good book, blanket, and cup of chai tea.

wow, it's like 90 degrees here! so unusual for September here in NH.....
I love it though!

Oh yum. Chai tea and a good book are the perfect combination, Elanor. It sounds lovely!

We've got a clear, sunshiny day here in South-coastal AK, but a lot of high winds. I'm upstairs right now, sitting on a bed with my back against the outer wall. Sometimes I can feel it shake. There's a big old pine down in the front yard, too! Right across the driveway...

We're into the time of year when the weather can be absolutely glorious. Last evening, I got together with friends (including the family with the 2 little girls I've mentioned before) for birthdays. After eating out we returned to their house for a nice evening fire. It was a pleasant, crisp evening, perfect for getting rid of a little extra firewood. And the 9-year-old, Abby, is a little pyromaniac. She loves playing in the fire so we are teaching her how to do it safely.

And this is the kind of weather forecast that's just about unbeatable, especially after a hot humid summer and last week's rainy weather. I think I'll be outside a lot this upcoming week!

(Temps in Fahrenheit; they range from 7-23C)

Mon, Sep 27
Partly Cloudy
Hi 70°
Lo 51°

Tue, Sep 28
Sunny
Hi 64°
Lo 48°

Wed, Sep 29
Sunny
Hi 73°
Lo 50°

Thu, Sep 30
Sunny
Hi 67°
Lo 47°

Fri, Oct 1
Sunny
Hi 63°
Lo 45°

Sat, Oct 2
Sunny
Hi 60°
Lo 44°

^Wooow! I am inlove with your weather!

Here, we had 2 days of no rain, actually 1 and a half. I hope it just stays sunny and cloudy, I really am getting sick of getting wet because of the rainy season.