Leap Year 2024: What's the day all about?

2024 is very special because it's what's known as a leap year.

It means the month of February has an extra day, so there are 29 instead of the usual 28.

Leap years come around just once every four years. It's all to do with the amount of time it takes for planet Earth to orbit the Sun.

A typical year has 365 days according to the calendar, and this is linked to how long the Earth takes to go around the Sun once.

However, it actually takes the Earth a bit longer - approximately 365 days and a quarter - to make one complete orbit. The quarter is equal to six extra hours.

This means every four years, another 24 hours is added up, and this is counted as an extra day in the calendar. This is where we get the date the 29th February.

Any year that can be divided by four without the need for rounding up or down is a leap year.

People who were born on the 29th February tend to celebrate their birthdays a little differently compared to people born on other dates.

They're often known as leaplings, as their official birthday only comes around once every four years.

Many leaplings will choose to either celebrate their birthday on the 28 February, or on the 1 March.

Being a leapling is unique as only a small percentage of people around the world were born on the 29th February.