SIEM REAP: The spring equinox is coming up on 21 March, the first of two equinoxes when visitors can witness the sun rise directly over the central peak of the Angkor Wat temples.

An equinox occurs when the sun is directly over the Earth’s equator, making it so that the day and night are of equal length. The two equinoxes of the year happen in March, the spring equinox, and in September, the autumnal equinox.

Visitors can witness the sun rising directly over the top of Angkor Wat’s central peak during the equinox from the temple's main central entrance in the West.

The APSARA Authority has notified visitors that the special sunrise at Angkor Wat will take place on 21 March and 22 September this year.

At the same time, the King of Cambodia will also be presiding over the torch lighting ceremony for the SEA Games on the same day of the spring equinox, as this symbolic sunrise event is a fitting start for the torch relay in Siem Reap, which will then pass through numerous Southeast Asian countries until the start of the 32nd SEA Games in May.

The equinox sunrise at Angkor Wat shows the meticulous study that went into building the temples, combining brilliant architectural design, complex mathematical calculations, engineering and astronomy.

The APSARA Authority invites the public, all national and international guests, to visit Angkor Wat and witness this magical event together.