It's the official first day of spring, the first day of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, and the blossoms are halfway to peak bloom. That means very soon, thousands of people will travel from across the country — even the world — to see the cherry blossoms planted throughout D.

The cherry trees in the nation’s capital have reached stage three of their bloom cycle as they progress toward their flowery peak.

If you look closely, you'll see florets coming out of the Tidal Basin's cherry blossom buds, marking stage 2 of blossom development.