The process of “Springing Forward” begins daylight saving time.
ATLANTA — Daylight saving time begins Sunday morning, March 9. When “springing forward,” sunrises and sunsets will jump one hour later.
In Atlanta, our sunsets will jump from 6:41 p.m. Saturday, March 8, to 7:41 p.m. on Sunday, March 9. By the end of the month, we’ll be nearing our first 8 p.m. sunset of the year.
But it will also mean that morning commutes will be darker for the rest of March. In the week preceding the start of daylight saving time, sunrises inch a few ticks before 7 a.m. But, returning to work on March 10 after the weekend, the sunrise won’t be until nearly 8 a.m.!
Luckily, we see a lot of daylight gain throughout March, so by the end of the month, sunrise times will be before 7:30 a.m. again.
March marks the start of Meteorological Spring. Astronomical Spring, the Spring Equinox, is Thursday, March 20. And although fans of lighter evenings will get excited about the jump at the start of daylight saving time, the entire month features later sunsets each day.
On March 1, we have just 11 hours and 43 minutes of daylight. Throughout March, Atlanta gains 48 minutes and 25 seconds of daylight, and by March 31, we will have 12 hours and 31 minutes of daylight.
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