Century leap year thus the leap day February 29 in those years always falls on a Tuesday (dominical letter BA). The Gregorian calendar yields an average year that currently tracks the annual revolution period of the Earth more closely than the older Julian calendar, in which every fourth year (including end-of-century years) is a leap year. The Julian formula adds too many leap days (3 every 400 years), causing the Julian calendar to drift gradually with respect to the astronomical seasons. Over time, natural events such as the spring equinox began to occur earlier and earlier in the Julian calendar. The Gregorian calendar
February 29 February 29 February 29, also known as leap day or leap year day, is a date added to most years that are divisible by 4, such as 2012, 2016, 2020, 2024, and 2028. A leap day is added in various solar calendars (calendars based on the Earth's revolution around the Sun), including the Gregorian calendar standard in most of the world. Lunisolar calendars (whose months are based on the phases of the Moon) instead add a leap or intercalary month. In the Gregorian calendar, years that are divisible by 100, but not by 400, do not contain a leap day.