Equinox and Solstice

Equinox refers to a day with an equal duration of day and night. We have two
equinoxes in a year which are:

 Spring equinox on March 21

 Autumnal equinox on September 23

On the other hand, the solstice refers to a day with either the longest day or the
shortest. The two solstices in a year are:

 Winter solstice on December 22
 Summer solstice on June 21

Inclination of Earth’s Axis and Orbital Plane

As the earth orbits around the sun in an elliptical path, its tilted axis (an axis that’s
tilted 23 degrees with respect to the vertical line from the earth’s orbital plane) results
in the sunlight reaching the earth’s surface at various angles. This is the reason why
the length of days and nights vary and are not the same anywhere in the world.
Let us understand the differences between equinox and solstice in detail by referring
to the table below.

Equinox vs Solstice
Equinox Solstice

Time of the year when the sun is nearest to the equatorial Time of the year when the sun is farthest from the
plane giving equal lengths of day and night. equatorial plane resulting in long nights and days.

An equinox occurs at the start of the spring and fall. The solstice occurs during the summer and the winter.

Occurs on March 21 (Vernal equinox) and on September Occurs on June 21(Summer Solstice) and on Dec 22
23 (Autumnal equinox). (Winter Solstice).

The listed were a few differences between solstice and equinox. While the solstices
result in a change of the length of night and day, the equinoxes do not. The summer
and winter solstices result in the longest and shortest day of the year respectively
while the equinoxes result in an equal amount of daylight and darkness received all
across the earth.