All 24 solar terms · 5/24
Clear and Bright 清明 · Qīngmíng
Both a solar term and a festival (Tomb-Sweeping Day), a public holiday in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Families sweep and tend ancestral graves and go on spring outings (踏青); in Jiangnan green rice dumplings made with mugwort (青团) are eaten.
- Longitude of the Sun15°
- Jie / ZhongqiJie (节), a sectional term: it begins a month of the Four Pillars
- Sekki清明 seimei
Clear and Bright: when it begins, 2026 to 2031
| 2026 | 5 April 2026, 02:40 | 4 April, 18:40 UTC |
|---|---|---|
| 2027 | 5 April 2027, 08:17 | 5 April, 00:17 UTC |
| 2028 | 4 April 2028, 14:03 | 4 April, 06:03 UTC |
| 2029 | 4 April 2029, 19:58 | 4 April, 11:58 UTC |
| 2030 | 5 April 2030, 01:41 | 4 April, 17:41 UTC |
| 2031 | 5 April 2031, 07:28 | 4 April, 23:28 UTC |
Its three kō in Japan
- 玄鳥至 tsubame kitaru: Swallows return · 5 April 2027
- 鴻雁北 kōgan kita e kaeru: Wild geese fly north · 10 April 2027
- 虹始見 niji hajimete arawaru: First rainbows · 15 April 2027
Calculated from the Sun's apparent position (PyEphem), to about a minute. Names, meanings and customs after the Hong Kong Observatory, the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan and UNESCO.