solar year

But even this system was flawed, because the quarter of a day that leap year adds annually is a bit longer than the solar year’s leftover 0.242 day.

“If the solar year was a perfect 365.25 then we wouldn’t have to worry about the tricky math involved,” Eakes said.

The Gregorian calendar, intended to more accurately mark the solar year, was adopted in 1752, adding 11 days.

The ancient church set its religious feasts based on the Julian calendar, but after more than a millennium, that calendar had increasingly gotten out of alignment with the solar year.

For the next three quarters of a solar year, our daylight allotment will be less.