HAPPY LEAR YEAR 2024: Today, February 29 marks Leap Year. To celebrate the day, Google’s Doodle features a frog labelled with the date “February 29” positioned between “February 28” and “March 1.” As the frog leaps, the “February 29” date disappears. This scene takes place within a pond environment with rocks and leaves, where the word “Google” is subtly incorporated in the background.
Alongside the animated doodle, a playful message appears: “The Ribbiting news, it’s Leap Day! Leap Day, February 29th, only occurs about every four years, to keep our calendars in alignment with the Earth and sun. Enjoy this bonus day of February — Happy Leap Day!”
LEAP YEAR EXPLAINED
A leap year is a year with one extra day, making it 366 days long instead of the usual 365. This extra day, called leap day, is added to February, making it 29 days long in a leap year.
WHY DO WE HAVE LEAP YEARS?
The Earth takes about 365.25 days to orbit the Sun, not exactly 365 days. If we didn’t have leap years, our calendar would gradually drift out of sync with the seasons. The extra day in a leap year helps keep things aligned.
LEAP YEAR BIRTHDAY MATH
People born on February 29, also known as leaplings, only have an official birthday every four years. They may celebrate on February 28th in non-leap years, choose another day close to their actual birthday, or wait for the next leap day.
FAMOUS LEAP YEAR LIPLINGS
- Morarji Desai, former Indian prime minister.
- Prakash Nanjappa, an Olympian and Arjuna Awardee Indian shooter.
- Rukmini Devi, legendary Bharatanatyam dancer.
- Gioachino Rossini, Italian composer
- Akira Kurosawa, Japanese filmmaker
- Ja Rule, American rapper
- Peter Scanavino, Actor, stars in “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”
- Mark Foster, Lead singer of the band Foster the People
- Dennis Farina, Actor, known for his roles in “Crime Story” and “Law & Order”
- Jessie Usher, Actor, co-starred in “Independence Day: Resurgence”
- Ken Foree, Actor, best known from the horror film “Dawn of the Dead”
- Saul Williams, Rapper
- Cullen Jones, Olympic medal-winning swimmer
- Alex Rocco, Actor, played Moe Greene in “The Godfather”
- Jack Lousma, Astronaut
- Michèle Morgan, French film actor
- Joss Ackland, British actor)
- William Wellman, Oscar-winning screenwriter and film director
- Jessica Long, Paralympic swimmer
HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT LEAP YEARS
- Leap years occur almost every four years. However, there’s a slight exception: years divisible by 100 but not by 400 are not leap years. So, for example, 1900 was not a leap year, but 2000 was.
- The next leap year after 2024 will be 2028.
- Leap years are significant for keeping our calendar system synchronized with the Earth’s revolution around the Sun.
- Leap day birthdays are unique and come with interesting challenges when it comes to celebrating birthdays.
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