The King's Port Inn is hoping everybody is enjoying the spring season! The winter is behind us, and we are looking forward to summertime! April is such a wonderful month. There is a science behind the change of seasons, where the earth becomes closer to the sun, and we wanted to share the interesting science behind spring. We hope you enjoy these scientific tidbits:
Astronomically spring arrives when the sun reaches a certain height over the equator at noon each year. This is typically what most folks celebrate and those in the media herald as spring's arrival.
When spring arrived, on March 20th, both the vernal and autumnal equinoxes of the sun were directly overhead at noon at some place along the equator of our planet. This year, that occurred on March 20th. If you were standing in central Africa and looked up at noon, the sun would be directly above your head forming a 90-degree angle with the ground.
The highest point the sun will reach in Portland, Maine will be about 46 degrees above the horizon. This angle will continue to increase until the first day of summer when it's about 70 degrees. From then on, it falls reaching a minimum of 23 degrees as winter begins. Other places on the planet have different maximum heights. There's always somewhere where the sun is directly overhead, but it only occurs exactly at the equator on the equinox.
Down in the south pole this week the sun will go from being above the horizon all the time to being just below. As the days progress, it will become progressively darker until it's pitch black for many months. The opposite is occuring at the North Pole.
In a world which many of us are overextended and stressed, the fact that the planet is spinning around a tilted axis at over 1,000 mph can be lost. As spring arrives today, take a moment to ponder the changes occurring, how the increase in light and strength of the sun will soon be melting all the snow, warming the Earth and bringing about that magical and dramatic metamorphosis to our landscape known as spring.
The King's Port Inn has availability for the end of April. We have premium king rooms for only $89.00 a night. We also have Jacuzzi suites for only $119.00 a night. Each room includes free continental breakfast, free wi fi, and free parking. To make a reservation, please call us at 1-800-286-5767. We would be happy to hear from you.
Happy Spring!
The King's Port Inn
