If you’re watching closely you may start seeing signs that Autumn isn’t far off. Occasional falling leaves, a little lower humidity, shorter days and earlier sunsets, and the bird migration are all happening now. And of course, the pumpkin spice items showing up in our house!
The obvious first signal of an approaching fall is shorter days. Our sunsets now at around 8:30 PM, and we’re losing a couple minutes of daylight per day, with later sunrises as well. See the chart below, in just a few weeks our sunsets will be before 8 PM, and our days quickly become shorter and shorter.
Another harbinger that fall is only just over a month away (September 22nd), is the beginning of the big bird migration. As northerly breezes begin to flow, millions of birds are taking flight from their US and Canadian homes and heading southbound back to the Deep South, Central and South America.
You can find the daily bird migration maps at birdcast.org which incorporates doppler radar to track millions of migrating birds each day.
Next up on our list of fall teases – lower humidity levels! Yes, today our humidity levels are a bit lower, but next week we could have much drier air working in from the Great Lakes and Canada. A sign that the cooler/drier air up north will be winning more of the battles versus the tropical air down south. This is due to the lower sun angles and the air becoming much cooler to the north. The GFS has some really fall-like air showing up next week. Let’s hope so for you fall lovers!
So for those of you who are enchanted with the autumn season, the countdown begins! The fall season officially begins with the Autumnal Equinox (when sun rays are directly over equator) at 8:05 PM, September 22nd. Let us know what first signs of fall you are seeing! Email me: ben@extolmag.com. You can also share pictures through our Extol Media app.
-Meteorologist Ben Peine
