Leap year is back ... but why?

February is a day longer this year but have you ever wondered why we have leap years every four years?

Basically, leap years are needed to keep our modern-day Gregorian Calendar in alignment with the earth's revolutions around the sun.

What does that mean?

It takes the Earth approximately 365.242199 days (or 365 days, five hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds) to circle once around the sun.

However, the Gregorian calendar has only 365 (and a quarter) days in a year, so if we didn't add a day on Feb. 29 every four years, we would lose almost six hours off our calendar every year. After 100 years, our calendar would be off by approximately 24 days!

Enjoy your bonus day folks! And a special happy birthday to those who have a birthday on Feb. 29.