Have you ever wonder how seasons change?

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Have you ever wonder how seasons change?

We are too busy in our daily routine that we never wonder how seasons get change. Here is a short explanation of how earthlings experience the season change throughout the year.

We can’t really feel that the Earth is orbiting the Sun (even though the Earth is traveling 30 km/s), and these days not many people take notice of the Earth’s orbital position.  We primarily notice the passing of a year by the cycle of the seasons.

So what is the cause of the seasons?

Clearly, the seasons have something to do with the Earth’s orbit around the Sun. Yet many people are confused about why the Earth has seasons.

Why do seasons occur?

“The seasons are caused by the changing distance between the Earth and the Sun, and it is warmer in summer because the Earth is closer to the Sun at summer time.”

 This is a very common response and it is true that the Earth-Sun distance does change. As we just saw, the Earth’s distance from the Sun varies by about 3% during its orbit. So could summer occur when the Earth is closest to the Sun?
 NO!

Earth is farthest from the sun on its orbit when it is summer in the Northern Hemisphere.


The Earth is closest to the Sun at its Perihelion about 2 weeks after the December Solstice and farthest from the Sun at its Aphelion about 2 weeks after the June Solstice.





 Another, problem with this idea is that when it’s summer in the northern hemisphere, its winter in the southern hemisphere, and vice versa. So if this were the correct answer, it would be the same season in both hemispheres at the same time which is not the case.




So how we experience a change in seasons?

The direction of the rotational axis stays (nearly) fixed in space while the Earth orbits the Sun and the hemisphere that seems to “lean into” the Sun experiences summer, while the hemisphere that “leans away” from the Sun experiences winter.

Thus the tilt of the Earth’s rotation axis naturally explains why the seasons are opposite in the northern and southern hemispheres
In December, when the southern hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun, the southern part of the Earth receives more sunlight and experiences long summer days. At the same time, the northern hemisphere is tilted away from the Sun and receives less sunlight, experiencing short winter days.

What if you are living at the Equator?


If you live near the Equator, there is not much difference between the seasons all year round. During spring and autumn, the two hemispheres receive approximately equal amounts of sunlight.

What if you are living at the North or South pole?


If you are at the North or South Pole, then also experience two very long seasons: in summer, the North Pole is leaning towards the Sun and there is “daylight” for nearly six months. In winter, the North Pole is leaning away from the Sun and it is “nighttime” for nearly six months.


 In most cultures, including all western countries, the year is commonly divided into four seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall or Autumn, Winter.
Since the year has 12 months, each season lasts about three months. 

To keep your eyes a the sky you need some gadgets, which you can buy from here. You can start with binoculars which are cheap and handy.

Stay tuned for more interesting facts about astronomy!



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