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Leap Day: holding the calendar together since the days of Julius Caesar

Ending an extra day every four years prevents summer in November and other calendar chaos
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A calendar shows the month of February, including leap day, Feb. 29, on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Leap year. It’s a delight for the calendar and math nerds among us. So how did it all begin and why?

Have a look at some of the numbers, history and lore behind the (not quite) every-four-year phenomenon that adds a 29th day to February.

BY THE NUMBERS

The math is mind-boggling in a layperson sort of way and down to fractions of days and minutes.

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