February 2024 has 29 days. Most years, February has 28 days, but every four years February has an extra day during leap years.
What Are Leap Years?
Leap years occur every four years to sync up the calendar year with the astronomical year. The astronomical year is the time it takes the Earth to orbit around the sun, which is about 365.2422 days. The calendar year is 365 days, so an extra day needs to be added periodically to the calendar to keep it aligned with the seasons.
The Gregorian calendar, which is the calendar system used today, adds an extra day to February during leap years. Leap years occur in years that are divisible by four, except for years that are divisible by 100 but not 400. So 2020 was a leap year, but 2100 will not be. 2024 is a leap year because it is divisible by four.
Why Does February Have the Leap Day?
February was chosen to have the leap day because it has the fewest days of any month in the Gregorian calendar. Adding the extra day to February keeps the calendar aligned with the seasons without disrupting the months’ traditional lengths.
February 29th is added after February 28th. In leap years, February has 29 days instead of the usual 28 days. So all the dates shift forward by one day, with February 29th between February 28th and March 1st.
In summary, February 2024 has 29 days because 2024 is a leap year. Leap years add an extra day to February every four years to keep the calendar aligned with the astronomical year. The 29th day falls on February 29th.