Seasonal & Holidays

When Is The First Day Of Fall 2019: Can't-Miss Events In Ashburn

Celebrate fall in Ashburn with events like the annual Virginia Wine Festival and the Loudoun Fall Farm Tour.

The first day of fall is Sept. 23, 2019. Here are some can't-miss fall events in Ashburn.
The first day of fall is Sept. 23, 2019. Here are some can't-miss fall events in Ashburn. (Shutterstock)

The fall equinox on Monday, Sept. 23, officially ushers in the new season and its promise of crisp air, show-stopping leaf displays and more sunny afternoons in college football stadiums. Fall is an especially exciting time of year in Ashburn and other communities in Loudoun County.

There are plenty of events to choose from to enjoy fall in the area. Here are a few:

Sept. 28 - Nov. 5: Temple Hall Fall Festival and Corn Maize, Leesburg
Celebrate the harvest at Temple Hall Farm with six weeks of autumnal adventures. Bounce on the giant jumping pillows, see pumpkins and corn soar through the air from pumpkin blasters and corn cannons, and watch live music and pig races. Don’t forget about the 20-acre corn maze.

Find out what's happening in Ashburnwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Sept. 28: Leesburg Airshow 2019 - 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Leesburg
Come enjoy a fun-filled day of exciting and educational aviation displays and demonstrations at the 2019 Leesburg Airshow. The airshow exhibitors will showcase the many facets of general aviation, such as flight training, corporate transportation and emergency rescue operations. In addition, there will be inflatables for the kids and a variety of food vendors.

Oct. 12: Tracy Hamlin's Sweet Jazz & Wine Festival - 12:30-8:30 p.m., Ashburn
Tracy Hamlin’s Sweet Jazz & Wine Festival combines beloved wine with one of Loudoun’s best kept secrets: the lively jazz culture and renowned jazz artists. Partial proceeds from the festival will go to supporting music instruction for local students from low-income families.

Find out what's happening in Ashburnwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Oct. 19: Fall Festival at Ashbrook Commons, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Ashburn
Enjoy free fall fun for the whole family. This event features activities including Face painting, a slide and moon bounce, a balloon sculptor and pumpkin decorating.

Oct. 19-20: Loudoun Fall Farm Tour, Western Loudoun County
Treat yourself to a free, self-guided tour through western Loudoun County during the annual Fall Farm Tour. The event features participating farms that will provide you and your family and friends with a chance to do everything from pick-your-own pumpkins to pet a piglet to sample local foods.

Oct. 19-20: Virginia Wine Festival 2019, Ashburn
Enjoy wine from some of Virginia’s top wineries, and also indulge in food trucks, live music, sweets and the fourth annual Virginia Oyster Pavilion.

See more events on the Ashburn Patch calendar.

The autumnal equinox isn’t a day-long event, but rather occurs at the exact moment the sun crosses the celestial equator. In New York City, fall officially arrives at 3:50 a.m. EDT..

We’re also coming up on the end of Daylight Saving Time, which officially ends on Sunday, Nov. 3, but that’s a while off.

SEE ALSO: Fall Foliage Map 2019: When Fall Colors Peak Around The U.S.

The word equinox comes from the Latin words “aequus,” which means “equal,” and “nox,” which means night. That’s led to the perception that everyone worldwide sees the same amount of daylight and nighttime, but it’s not the absolute truth. To be precise, daylight lasts about 8 minutes longer than nighttime on the day of the equinox.

Here are five other things to know about the September equinox:

1. There’s no guarantee, of course, but the chances of seeing stunning aurora borealis displays increase after the fall equinox, according to NASA. Both the spring and fall equinoxes are good aurora seasons, but autumn produces a surplus of geomagnetic storms — almost twice the annual average.

2. Nobody alive has seen a rare Sept. 21 autumnal equinox, and only young people have any hope of seeing one barring any big shifts in life expectancy. It hasn’t happened on that date in many millennia, and it won’t happen again until 2092 and 2096.

The date of the September equinox varies. Usually, it’s on the 22nd or, as it is this year, the 23rd, but it can occur as early as Sept. 21 or as late as Sept. 24 (that hasn’t happened since 1931, and won’t again until 2303).

The reason: A year is defined as 365 days by the Gregorian calendar, but it takes the Earth 365 and ¼ days to orbit the sun. What this means is the autumnal equinox occurs about 6 hours later than it did the year prior, which eventually moves the date by a day.

3. Thank Canada for spectacular fall sunsets with more vivid with pinks, reds and oranges than at any other time of the year. The Weather Channel offers an explanation: Dry, clean Canadian air begins to sweep across the country, fewer colors of the rainbow spectrum are scattered by air molecules. That means the reds, oranges, yellows and pinks make it through for your sunset-viewing pleasure.

4. No matter where you are in the world, the sun will rise due east and set due west during the fall equinox (the same thing happens during the spring equinox). For the directionally challenged, it’s a good time for a reset. Go outside around sunset or sunrise, find a landmark and mark the sun’s location in relation to it.

5. Fall isn’t just a time for the human world to start buttoning things up outside. It’s rutting — or mating — season for deer, elk and moose, and males will battle it out by thrusting their antlers together until one of them gives up or dies. Swans, geese and ducks begin their migration south. Frogs burrow deep into mud holes to wait out the winter. Chipmunks retreat to their underground tunnels. Bears eat and drink almost non-stop as they prepare for hibernation. And, according to the Mother Nature Network, the male Siberian hamster goes through a huge biological change: Its testicles swell almost 17 times their normal size.


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