When is Easter Sunday This Year?

During the 30 years I worked at a public library reference desk, I could always count on fielding this question numerous times during the first few months of the year. (For those planning ahead, there was this variation: "When is Easter Sunday next year?")

By now, just about everyone knows that Easter falls later this year (April 12), which means that many students are just starting their spring breaks. (And with snow on the ground for many in Wisconsin.)

Never been able to figure out why Easter is so variable? Snopes.com provides a brief and informative summary here.

Key facts.

1. Easter falls on the Sunday following the first full moon occurring after the vernal equinox. (For example, in 2009 the first day of spring is Friday, March 20. A subsequent full moon occurs on Thursday, April 9, which places Easter on Sunday, April 12.)

2. The earliest Easter can fall is March 22, which last took place in 1818 and will occur again in 2285. (Guess I'll have to miss it. At least in this life.)

3. The latest Easter can fall is April 25, which last took place in 1943 and will occur again in 2038, when I'll be 88!

Roll away the stone!

And as long as we're on the subject, Leon Russell should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.