The Sunsets of Change

It's been a while since I've revisited my obsession with tracking sunsets and the seasons.  The season of change is upon us again as the earth and sun continue their celestial dance.  So, once again....


Officially, fall begins September 22nd 5:18 P.M. EDT 2118 UTC.  But in many ways it has already begun here in Binghamton, New York.  Being away last week for 6 days, the changes in season were obvious as we returned home.

Here and there in the hills, leaves are shedding their green, revealing their true colors of red and yellow.

Sunlight weakens.  Overcast days have the look of winter, promising the days of snow and cold will be here soon.

The farmers markets brim with local apples:  Honeycrisp, Ginger Gold, Paula Gold, 20 Ounce.  (more varieties to come soon!) The Cider Mill in Endicott presses its cider and advertises its Indian Corn, winter squash, donuts, candy apples, and pies.  (theirs are almost the only donuts I will eat.)

The "Realtime Global Map" on Eternal Sunset divider between light and dark is almost straight up and down from north to south, as sunrise and sunset evens out in all parts of the globe.  As I write this, the sun is setting at Bernardo O'Higgins base in Antarctica as the base gets ready to welcome spring and the annual return of the Gentoo penguins.  And, on the other end of the world, Longyearben, Norway (above the Arctic Circle) edges towards fall - it is dark there right now (nearly midnight) but earlier today I saw snow on the ground. Soon, the sun will set for good and not rise again until next year.

In Fairbanks, Alaska, the trees are already past peak in color and the snow creeps further down the mountains around Anchorage.

Meanwhile, in the Binghamton area, a blogger works among her flowers and feels the chill in the air.  The crickets still chirp in the bright sun. There is a frost advisory for early tomorrow starting at 3am although I doubt it will hit where we live in a valley. But it is only a matter of time.

A very bittersweet time.