Posted by Today is February 29, which means that 2012 is a leap year. Every four years, February gains an extra day. Why do we have leap years? The Earth orbits the sun once every year, but it takes a little longer than 365 days–the trip actually takes 365.242 days. To keep the calendar from drifting out of sync, an extra day is added to the calendar every fourth year. The next leap year will be in 2016.
Read more about leap years on National Geographic News.
Read what kids do when their birthday is on February 29 on the Washington Post.
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