February 29 takes approximately 6 hours longer than 365 whole days. A leap day compensates for this lag, realigning the calendar with the Earth's position in the Solar System; otherwise, seasons would occur later than intended in the calendar year. The Julian calendar used in Christendom until the 16th century added a leap day every four years; but this rule adds too many days (roughly 3 every 400 years), making the equinoxes and solstices shift gradually to earlier dates. By the 16th century the vernal equinox had drifted to March 11, and the Gregorian calendar was introduced both to shift it back
365-day calendar 365-day calendar A 365-day calendar consists of exactly 365 days per year (no leap days), and is primarily used in computer models and as an assumption in every-day calculations. For example, a calculation of a daily rate may use an annual total divided by exactly 365. Interest rates in some banks are calculated using a 365-day calendar. Some Mesoamerican calendars used a 365-day year with no leap year, resulting in a gradual shift of the seasons relative to the calendar. This includes the Maya Haab' and the Aztec Xiuhpohualli calendars. Some versions of the Zoroastrian calendar also use a fixed