You will have plenty of time to dye Easter eggs this year.
Easter falls on April 24, the latest it has arrived in 68 years, according to the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington.
Easter hasn't come this late since 1943 and won't be this late again until 2038.
"In both 1943 and 2038 Easter occurs on April 25, which is as late as it can theoretically be," said Geoff Chester, an astronomer and public relations officer with the observatory.
Easter last occurred on April 24 in 1859, and it will not fall again on the 24th until 2095.
"The earliest possible date for Easter is March 22," Chester said.
Easter is generally the first Sunday after the full moon that follows the vernal equinox.
That is the case this year but not every year, because the precise definition — used by Christian churches under rules going back to the 1500s — is more complicated.
For example, that definition fixes the vernal equinox — the first day of spring — as March 21, although that date can vary. The equinox comes this year on March 20.
You'll have to work on those eggs earlier the next couple of years. Easter falls on April 8 in 2012 and March 31 in 2013 before falling back to April 20 in 2014.
rspringston@timesdispatch.com
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