APOD 1.4

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100923.html

September 23 was the equinox. It(the sun) crossed the celestial equator at 3:09 UT. This marks the change of seasons. The reason that the seasonal weather stays is because the oceans retain hot and cold longer than the atmosphere, so it influences it. Equinox means "equal night", which means a (roughly, but not exact)1:1 ratio of light and dark. There is apperently a myth about egg stability during the equinox that I was unaware of, but it is only an urban legend. Most eggshells have small bumps in them that enable them to be on edge at any day of the year. This image was falsely colored to show emission from highly ionized atoms. The plasma loops are from solar active fields.