It's the first day of spring. Here's how to get free food in Mississippi
Spring has sprung, and restaurants around the country are offering deals and free treats to make the day of the vernal equinox extra bright.
Looking ahead, the National Weather Service, AccuWeather and the Old Farmer's Almanac released long-range spring forecasts. Are you ready for rain and severe weather?
Plan ahead for the season and find out which restaurants will help you make the start of spring a little sweeter. Here's what we know.
Meteorological spring started March 1.
But astronomical spring kicks off with the equinox at 4:01 a.m. CT Thursday, March 20.
The equinox is when the sun passes the celestial equator, causing a day and night that are almost equal in length.
The summer solstice is he longest day of the year, meaning the one with the most sunlight. It will be Friday, June 20, 2025.
The fall equinox, or start of autumn will be Monday, Sept. 22, 2025.
The winter solstice, or shortest day with the longest night, will be on Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025.
Dairy Queen's Free Cone Day is March 20. Customers can get a cone with the iconic soft serve topped with a curlicue while supplies last. If you pay $1 for the cone to be dipped, the proceeds will benefit Children's Miracle Network Hospitals.
A Dunkin' Donuts, rewards members can get 3x points on any Dunkin' Refreshers ordered today. You have to activate the offer before placing the order, and the rewards are only for the Refreshers, not the whole order.
Baskin-Robbins is running a spring special through April 30. Save on frozen drinks, including smoothies, Mangonadas and milkshakes. A small will be $5, a medium is $6 and a large is $7.
The Old Farmer's Almanac predictions for spring call for "warmer-than-normal" temperatures for most of the country" paired with more rain than average. The climbing temperatures are likely to bring the Deep South more severe weather than normal.
The Old Farmer's Almanac offers week-by-week projections. It estimates that April temperatures will average about 64 degrees and the region could get about 6.8 inches of rain (2.5 inches more than average).
Here's what it says April could look like in the Jackson area:
April 1-7: Rain, turning cold.
April 8-17: Sunny and warmer.
April 18-26: Scattered thunderstorms, cool, then warming up.
April 27-30: Sunny and warm.
Keep track to see how accurate it is.
The Old Farmer's Almanac has helped people plan their year since 1792, but a University of Illinois study of the almanac's accuracy published in 1981 found only about 50% accuracy for rain and precipitation forecasts over five years.
In an internal review of how well they predicted the 2023-24 winter, the almanac gave itself about an 80% accuracy rate. They say they're looking at long-range predictions to help people like farmers, gardeners and event planners make decisions in advance, not give an accurate day-to-day weather forecast.
More: Active tornado season expected in Mississippi this spring: Here's what you need to know
Millions of people across the U.S. can expect more winter weather, including snow, leading into early spring, according to the AccuWeather forecast for the season. Meteorologists noted some parts of the northeast can expect frosts into early May.
Weather forecasts call for higher than average temperatures in the Deep South. That likely means more severe weather than normal on top of the high pollen count we've all come to expect.
The south and parts of the central U.S. can expect more frequent storms and tornadoes as the season progresses.
The National Weather Service says Mississippi can expect warmer than normal temperatures. Rain and other precipitation, however, will be average or below average for most of the state.
Meteorologists at the NWS office in Jackson encourage residents to be ready for twisters, which can strike year-round. But spring is often the peak tornado season for the state.
Spring will start in Mississippi soon: Here's what The Old Farmer's Almanac is predicting
Most storms hit in March, April and May, and the long-range forecast says spring 2025 could be an active season for severe storms and strong tornadoes.
According to an analysis of twister data from 1880 to 2023 in the Mississippi State University tornado database, the most storms hit Mississippi in:
April: 703.
March: 439.
November: 359.
May: 303.
No part of the year is totally safe. Twisters can hit every month, though July and August historically had the fewest.
Easter will be celebrated on Sunday, April 20.
These are the April average temperatures for the Jackson, Hattiesburg, Tupelo and Gulfport areas for 2020-24, according to data from the National Weather Service.
Jackson
2020: 64.1.
2021: 63.6.
2022: 65.2.
2023: 65.1.
2024: 67.3.
Hattiesburg
2020: 66.5.
2021: 64.
2022: 66.5.
2023: 66.6.
2024: 68.2.
Tupelo
2020: 61.3.
2021: 62.1
2022: 63.
2023: 62.3
2024: 65.1.
Gulfport
2020: 68.7
2021: 65.8
2022: 69.2.
2023: 69.4
2024: 69.8
Contributing: Gabe Hauari
Bonnie Bolden is the Deep South Connect reporter for Mississippi with Gannett/USA Today. Email her at bbolden@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Get free food in Mississippi today to celebrate first day of spring
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