The twenty-four solar terms reflect the influence of the sun on the earth and belong to the solar calendar. It is a knowledge system formed by observing the annual movement of the sun and understanding the changes in seasons, climate, phenology and other aspects throughout the year. It not only plays a guiding role in agricultural production, but also affects the ancient people's clothing, food, housing, transportation, and even cultural concepts. The lunar calendar currently used absorbs the solar terms of the Ganzhi calendar as a supplement to the calendar, and adjusts it through the "leap method" to make it consistent with the return year, forming a combined lunar calendar.
The twenty-four solar terms are not only the time criterion promulgated by the governments of the past dynasties, but also a compass for guiding agricultural production. In daily life, people use the compass to predict cold, warm, snow and rain. In the international meteorological community, the twenty-four solar terms are known as "China's fifth greatest invention." On November 30, 2016, the Twenty-Four Solar Terms were officially included in the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
