Aussie TikToker shocked to learn northern hemisphere season dates

Do the seasons start at the beginning of the month or according to the solstices?. Photo / TikTok @ lachlancrane

Do the seasons start at the beginning of the month or according to the solstices?

A now viral TikTok video posted by a shocked Australian man has launched a debate about when summer and winter technically begin.

The debate began after Lachlan Crane, a 22-year-old actor, took to the social media platform to reveal his shock after watching a video that said the northern hemisphere starts its seasons in the middle of the month.

In the clip, the confused Aussie man said, "You're really gonna be out there on 15th of June being like 'hmm summer. First day of summer'."

Adding, "Like no, it's the middle of June. The first day of June for you guys."

His confusion was understood by many Australians and New Zealanders who start the seasons according to the month, eg June 1 is the beginning of winter and December 1 is the beginning of summer, while spring is September 1 and autumn is March 1, for the southern hemisphere.

The man was visibly shocked to learn when summer starts in the UK and the US. Photo / TikTok @ lachlancrane

Meanwhile, countries in the northern hemisphere like the UK and the US begin summer on June 21 and winter on December 21 according to solstice days - the longest and shortest days of the year, respectively - while spring and autumn fall on equinox days.

The video has had more than 1.6 million views and received thousands of comments from people all around the world who said season start dates can differ for each country.

One person from the US said, "September 21ish for fall, December 21ish for winter, March 21ish for spring." A TikTok user from Norway added, "Winter: December 1st, spring: March 1st, summer: June 1st, autumn: September 1st."

While another said, "Yeah, summer starts on the summer solstice and then autumnal equinox and what not. It's based on the orbit not calendar."

A third person poked fun at the newfound information and said, "If I have learnt anything from this app, is that nothing in the US is simple or straightforward."

And another person from the UK ignored the dates completely, instead opting to identify seasons based on feelings or heat, "Meanwhile in UK: flowers blooming =spring, complain about heat=summer, sky is falling=autumn, cold & rainy=winter."

Finally, a fellow Australian came to the man's rescue and commented, "As an Aussie who moved to Canada. It's so weird. Winter technically 'starts' like three days before Christmas. Like no, it's been winter for two months already."