Happy February 29th, also known as leap day!

though the name may leave you thinking of amphibians, leap day actually has no link to leaping (or frogs).

leap years are used to maintain synchronicity with events that occur on an annual basis (like equinox or solstice). However to really understand what a leap year is, we must first ask the famous question: how do you measure a year (on earth)?

in sunsets?

in midnights?

in cups of coffee?

well, according to The Gregorian calendar ,and most other western calendars,  a calendar year is measured by the amount of time that it takes the earth to fully orbit the sun- calculated to be approximately 365 & 1/4 days.

now the issue of synchronicity mentioned previously is relevant; though it sounds simple to stuff it and call every year 365 & 1/4 days, in the grand scheme of things it really is not so simple. every year, around 6 hours would deviate meaning that after 100 years, seasons would be out of sync by a whopping 24 calendar days!

wow, it sounds simpler to measure a year in cups of coffee, doesn't it!

But wait! before you burn every calendar in your home, a hero is here, that's right, leap day has bounded to the rescue!

slotting in perfectly the day after February 28th every four years to keep everything in line, leap days give the earth a breather allowing it extra time to complete a full orbit.