Fall begins bright and early Wednesday morning

The Autumnal Equinox begins bright and early at 3:21am Wednesday morning.  Anyone planning on getting up early to welcome in the new season?  Yeah, I'm not going to either.

The first day of fall will be beautiful.  Watch for patchy fog during the morning commute, but skies should turn mostly sunny by the afternoon with highs back in the upper 70's and lower 80's.

The sun's rays will be directly overhead on the equator, bringing nearly equal hours of day and night.  The days will continue to slowly get shorter and shorter over the next few months as the sun's rays move southward.

And with fall starting tomorrow, be on the lookout for those changing fall leaves!

According to the USDA Forest Service, the factors that tend to bring out the brightest fall colors are a warm and wet spring, favorable summer conditions (not too hot, not too cold) and warm, sunny fall days with cool nights.  However, warm periods during the fall will lower the intensity of autumn colors. 

There are many factors that go into how and when leaves change colors.  And it's important to remember that not every year is going to be the same.  But when you do see the leaves changing, or the combine in the corn field remember to snap a fall picture and send it to weather@wtvo.com

Click here to see how well the fall foliage is doing in Wisconsin

Click here to see how well the fall foliage is doing in Illinois