This year , the vernal equinox officially arrives on Tuesday , March 19 at 11:06 pm in Washington , D.C .
今年的春分正式时间是华盛顿特区时间3月19日星期二晚上11点06分。
That is 3:06 UTC on Wednesday , March 20 .
也就是协调世界时3月20日星期三3点06分。
At that time , the sun will be exactly above the Earth's equator .
那一刻，太阳将正好位于地球赤道的正上方。
The word vernal comes from the Latin word vernalis , meaning “of the spring .”
vernal一词来自拉丁语vernalis，意思是“春天的”。
And equinox comes from the Latin words aequus , meaning equal , and nox , meaning night .
而equinox来自拉丁语aequus（意为相等）和nox（意为夜晚）。
The day has 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of nighttime .
这一天有12个小时的白天和12个小时的黑夜。
And in the Northern Hemisphere , the day marks the beginning of spring .
在北半球，这一天标志着春天的开始。
On this day , people living in colder areas of the Northern Hemisphere hope they can put away their winter clothes .
这一天，生活在北半球较冷地区的人们希望可以把冬衣收起来了。
They also may soon start planting flowers and vegetables in a garden .
他们也可能很快开始在园子里种花种菜。
Here in Washington , D.C ., March 20 also marks the first day of the National Cherry Blossom Festival .
在华盛顿特区，3月20日也是全国樱花节的第一天。
Each year , people from around the world come to see the beautiful pink and white blossoms on the thousands of flowering cherry trees .
每年，来自世界各地的人们都会来观赏数千棵樱花树上美丽的粉色和白色花朵。
For Washingtonians , the cherry blossoms are a welcome sign that spring has arrived .
对华盛顿人来说，樱花是春天到来的可喜信号。
In ancient times , some cultures built structures to signal the start of spring .
在古代，一些文化建造了用来标示春天开始的建筑。
Around the year 1000 A.D ., for example , the Maya built a pyramid in what is now Mexico's Yucatan .
例如，大约在公元1000年，玛雅人在今天墨西哥的尤卡坦建造了一座金字塔。
It sits within an ancient city called Chichen Itza .
它坐落在一座名为奇琴伊察的古城中。
On the spring equinox , the sunlight hits in a way that makes the structure look like a snake .
在春分这天，阳光的照射方式会让这座建筑看起来像一条蛇。
The Maya called this day “the return of the Sun serpent .”
玛雅人把这一天称为“太阳之蛇的回归”。
Today , cultures worldwide have their own ways of identifying and celebrating the arrival of spring .
如今，世界各地的文化都有自己辨识和庆祝春天到来的方式。
In Japan , spring is marked with a huge cherry blossom festival , known as hanami .
在日本，人们以盛大的樱花节——“花见”来迎接春天。
The tradition dates back more than a thousand years .
这一传统可以追溯到一千多年前。
People gather under the blooming trees to eat , drink tea , celebrate and enjoy the cherry blossoms , known as sakura in Japanese .
人们聚集在盛开的树下吃东西、喝茶、庆祝，欣赏日语中称为“sakura”的樱花。
Artists and poets celebrate the short-lived blooms as a symbol of beauty .
艺术家和诗人把这些短暂绽放的花朵视为美的象征来歌颂。
The gift was to honor the lasting friendship between the United States and Japan .
这份礼物是为了纪念美国和日本之间持久的友谊。
For many countries in Central Asia and the Middle East , the vernal equinox also marks the beginning of a new year .
对中亚和中东的许多国家来说，春分也标志着新年的开始。
Countries along the ancient Silk Road trading path , including Afghanistan , Iran , Turkey , Uzbekistan , and other Central Asian nations , celebrate Nowruz .
古代丝绸之路贸易路线沿线的国家，包括阿富汗、伊朗、土耳其、乌兹别克斯坦和其他中亚国家，都会庆祝诺鲁孜节。
In the past , Iran was the only country where Nowruz was an official holiday .
过去，伊朗是唯一将诺鲁孜节定为正式假日的国家。
But after countries gained their independence following the fall of the Soviet Union , many made Nowruz a national holiday , as well .
但在苏联解体、这些国家获得独立后，许多国家也将诺鲁孜节定为国家假日。
During Nowruz , people visit family members and friends and exchange gifts .
诺鲁孜节期间，人们走亲访友，互赠礼物。
Iranian families set up a “haft seen ” display of seven special items that represent spring and new beginnings .
伊朗家庭会摆出“七鲜桌”，用七样特别的物品象征春天和新的开始。
In Uzbekistan and other places in Central Asia , people watch wrestling events , horse races and a special horseback game called , in Uzbek , Kopkari .
在乌兹别克斯坦和中亚其他地方，人们观看摔跤比赛、赛马，以及一种乌兹别克语称为“Kopkari”的特殊马上游戏。
In this game , two teams of players on horseback try to get the body of a headless goat into a goal .
在这项游戏中，两队骑手争相把一只无头山羊的躯体送进球门。
This year , Holi will take place on March 25 .
今年的洒红节将在3月25日举行。
People celebrate the festival by covering each other in -- you guessed it -- colors !
人们庆祝这个节日的方式是互相涂抹——你猜对了——各种颜色！
Children especially enjoy the festival , as they get to throw colored powder and water-filled balloons at others .
孩子们尤其喜欢这个节日，因为他们可以向别人扔彩色粉末和水球。
Some say the festival comes from a story of the burning of the devil Holika .
有人说，这个节日源于焚烧恶魔霍利卡的故事。
It represents the victory of good over evil , or the arrival of spring after a long , dark winter .
它象征着善战胜恶，或是漫长黑暗的冬天过后春天的到来。
Others say the celebration was inspired by the story of two young lovers with different skin colors .
另一些人说，这个节日的灵感来自一对肤色不同的年轻恋人的故事。
Krishna , who has blue skin , was in love with Radha .
皮肤是蓝色的克里希纳爱上了拉达。
So , he colored Radha with paint leading to the modern-day colorful festival of love .
于是，他用颜料给拉达涂上颜色，由此演变成今天五彩缤纷的爱之节日。
It is a wild street festival involving fire .
这是一个有火参与的狂野街头节日。
The festival centers on the creation – and burning – of huge colorful statues made of wood , paper and plastic .
这个节日的核心是制作并焚烧用木头、纸和塑料做成的巨大彩色雕像。
The statues are meant to look like real people .
这些雕像被做得像真人一样。
Valencian communities and organizations work all year to create these structures and place them throughout the city , with fireworks inside .
瓦伦西亚的社区和组织花一整年时间制作这些雕像，并在里面装上烟火，放置在城市各处。
Las Fallas celebrations began on March 15 , with events like bullfights , parades , and cooking and beauty competitions .
法雅节庆祝活动于3月15日开始，有斗牛、游行以及烹饪和选美比赛等活动。
Then , at midnight on March 19 , the city turns off all its streetlights and the statues are set on fire .
然后，在3月19日午夜，全城熄灭所有路灯，雕像被点燃。
This marks the end of the festival and the beginning of spring .
这标志着节日的结束和春天的开始。
And I'm John Russell .
我是约翰·拉塞尔。