However, the Gregorian calendar has only 365 days in a year, so if we didn't add a day on February 29 nearly every 4 years, we would lose almost six hours off our calendar every year. After only 100 years, our calendar would be off by approximately 24 days! Leap Years are needed to keep our calendar in alignment with the Earth's revolutions around the sun. It takes the Earth approximately 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds (a tropical year) – to circle once around the Sun.
Did you know there are also some interesting traditions for Leap Years. In Britain and Ireland, it is a tradition that women may propose marriage only on leap years. In some places the tradition was tightened to restricting female proposals to the modern leap year day, February 29. In Greece, marriage in a leap year is considered unlucky. One in five engaged couples in Greece will plan to avoid getting married in a leap year.
What are your chances of being born on leap day? About 1 in 1,500. A person born on February 29 may be called a "leapling" or a "leaper". In common years they usually celebrate their birthdays on February 28 or March 1. In some situations, March 1 is used as the birthday in a non-leap year since it is the day following February 28. Today, we celebrate Leap Day and the birthdays of "Leapers".
