On 11/06/2015 16:21, Michael Ossipoff wrote:
Hi John--
As I was saying in my reply to Anne, I'd trade places with residents
of Australia or Europe, in a New York minute.
Yes, by the way, I agree with the Australian designation for when
summer and winter begin:
Here, it's obvious that summer arrives with June, especially in the
parts of the country which have distinct seasons.
So I agree with the designation in Australia that says that summer
arrives with December, and winter arrives with June.
Here, for some reason, our astronomers have decided to define "summer"
as beginning at the summer solstice, and to define "winter" as
beginning at the winter solstice. There's not really any justification
for those arbitrary designations. Once I telephoned an astronomer who
always announces the beginning of the seasons, defined in his silly
way, on the radio. I explained to him that he should just speak of
"astronomical quarters", because his "seasons" have nothing to do with
the actual seasons, as we all perceive them. He finally defended
himself by saying that he didn't invent those astronomical
"season"-designations. But he was still proclaiming them on the radio
when the next solstice or equinox arrived.
Everyone here (except the astronomers and the broadcasters who quote
them) knows that, by the time June 21 arrives, it has already been
summer for a long time.
Michael Ossipoff
26N, 80W
For meteorologists, winter is DJF, Spring is MAM, Summers is JJA, Autumn
is SON.
--
--
Richard Mallett
Eaton Bray, Dunstable
South Beds. UK
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