The crisp air is creeping in, the days are getting shorter, and that means fall is almost here! Cooler temperatures, changing leaves, apple picking, corn mazes, and of course, warm apple cider — there’s a lot to love about the season. But my favorite part? The foliage. There’s nothing quite like driving down the highway and seeing the trees explode with the different shades of red, orange, and yellow.
I’m Jacob Marcus from SHU’s Discovery Science Center and Planetarium, and this is Discovery Deep Dive.
So, what makes those leaves change color? During the warmer months, leaves look green because of a pigment called chlorophyll. Chlorophyll absorbs red and blue light from the sun and reflects green light back to our eyes. But as fall approaches, the days get shorter and there’s less sunlight. The trees produce less chlorophyll, allowing other pigments that were already in the leaves to become visible — revealing those beautiful reds, oranges, and yellows.
As you start to drive around, you might notice that the leaves are falling earlier than normal. Why? Climate change and warmer temperatures disrupted the normal time for leaves to fall. This fall and winter, New England and other parts of the world are expected to have a super El Niño event.
A super El Niño releases an immense amount of warm water, heat, and air that can cause extreme drought in some places and more rainfall in others. This affects our leaves because nights are warmer than usual, which delays leaf changes. Also, flash floods stress the trees, which causes the leaves to drop early.
So this fall, take a closer look at the trees around you. Changes in foliage can tell us a lot about what’s happening in our environment. If you start to notice leaves falling at a faster rate, that means our trees are stressed out. So, take some time and enjoy peak fall foliage. And if you want to track peak foliage across Connecticut, check out the Connecticut Fall Foliage Report at CTvisit.com.
Enjoy the colors of the season!
