Equinox & Solstice Countdown
The year turns on four hinges — two equinoxes and two solstices. Here’s a live countdown to the next one, what it means, and the zodiac sign the Sun steps into at that exact moment. Free, no signup.
The four turning points of 2026
- March EquinoxSun enters Aries · EquinoxMar 20, 2026
- June SolsticeSun enters Cancer · SolsticeJun 21, 2026
- September EquinoxSun enters Libra · EquinoxSep 23, 2026
- December SolsticeSun enters Capricorn · SolsticeDec 21, 2026
Dates and times are the published astronomical instants, shown in UTC where noted. Each one drifts by a few hours year to year, so the calendar date can move by a day.
What are equinoxes and solstices?
Equinoxes and solstices are the four pivot points of Earth’s journey around the Sun. They happen because our planet is tilted on its axis by about 23.4 degrees. As Earth orbits, that tilt leans the Northern Hemisphere toward the Sun for half the year and away for the other half — and four moments in that cycle stand out enough that nearly every culture has marked them.
An equinox is one of the two moments when Earth’s tilt is sideways to the Sun, so day and night are very nearly equal everywhere on the planet. The word comes from the Latin aequinoctium — “equal night.” A solstice is one of the two moments when the tilt points most directly toward or away from the Sun, giving the longest or shortest day of the year. Solstice means “Sun stands still” — the point where the Sun’s daily climb in the sky pauses and reverses.
Crucially, each one is a precise instant, not a whole day. The countdown above ticks down to that exact moment, calculated from your device’s clock, so it’s accurate wherever you are.
The four turning points, in order
Through the year, the four markers arrive like clockwork — roughly a quarter of the orbit apart. In the Northern Hemisphere they run like this:
- March equinox (around March 20). Day and night balance and spring begins. The Sun crosses the celestial equator heading north, lifting the light a little longer each day.
- June solstice (around June 20–21). The longest day of the year in the north and the start of summer. The Sun reaches its highest point in the midday sky.
- September equinox (around September 22–23). Day and night balance again as autumn opens. The Sun crosses back south and nights begin to outlast the days.
- December solstice (around December 21). The shortest day in the north and the start of winter — then, quietly, the light begins its long return.
South of the equator, everything flips: the December solstice is midsummer and the June solstice is midwinter. The astronomical moments are the same the world over — only the seasons they open are reversed.
The zodiac link: four cardinal ingresses
In astrology, these four turning points are more than weather markers — each one is the exact moment the Sun ingresses into a cardinal sign, the signs that initiate each season. That’s no coincidence: the zodiac is anchored to the solar year, and the equinoxes and solstices are its load-bearing posts.
- March equinox → Aries. The wheel restarts. Initiative, fresh starts, the spark of a new cycle.
- June solstice → Cancer. Light peaks and turns toward home, roots and what you nurture.
- September equinox → Libra. Balance and the harvest — weighing, settling, fairness.
- December solstice → Capricorn. The deepest turn inward — rest, resolve and long-game ambition.
The four cardinal signs — Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn — sit at the corners of the zodiac for exactly this reason. Together they form the “cardinal cross,” the structural frame the rest of the astrological year hangs from.
Why the dates shift from year to year
A solstice or equinox never lands on exactly the same clock-time two years running, and the calendar date itself can wobble by a day. That’s because Earth takes about 365.24 days to circle the Sun, not a tidy 365. Each year the turning point arrives roughly six hours later than the last — until a leap day is added and the count snaps back. Over the leap-year cycle the date drifts forward and resets, which is why the December solstice can be the 21st in one year and the 22nd in another. The countdown here uses the published instant for each specific year, so it stays accurate as the dates move.
Questions about equinoxes and solstices
When is the next equinox or solstice?
This page works it out live in your browser. The four turning points each year are the March equinox (around March 20), the June solstice (around June 20–21), the September equinox (around September 22–23) and the December solstice (around December 21). The countdown at the top always points to whichever comes next from right now.
What's the difference between an equinox and a solstice?
An equinox is when day and night are almost equal everywhere — it happens twice a year, in March and September. A solstice is when daylight is at its longest or shortest, marking the start of summer or winter. Both are points in Earth's orbit, not whole days, so each one happens at an exact instant.
Why do the dates shift slightly each year?
Earth's orbit doesn't line up neatly with our 365-day calendar — the year is closer to 365.24 days. So each turning point lands about six hours later than the year before, then jumps back a day when a leap year resets the count. That's why a solstice can fall on December 21 one year and December 22 the next.
Which zodiac signs do the equinoxes and solstices fall on?
Each turning point is also a zodiac ingress into a cardinal sign. The March equinox is the Sun entering Aries, the June solstice is the Sun entering Cancer, the September equinox is Libra, and the December solstice is Capricorn. These four cardinal signs open each astrological season.
Is the solstice the start of a season?
In the common Northern-Hemisphere convention, yes: the March equinox opens spring, the June solstice opens summer, the September equinox opens autumn, and the December solstice opens winter. In the Southern Hemisphere the seasons are flipped — the June solstice is midwinter and the December solstice is midsummer.
