REVIEW: SEASONS LESSON

​THIS IS WHAT CAUSES THE SEASONS AS THE EARTH REVOLVES (ORBITS) AROUND THE SUN

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A season is a period of the year that is distinguished by special climate conditions. The four seasons (spring, summer, fall, and winter) follow one another regularly. Each has its own light, temperature, and weather patterns that repeat yearly. The cycle of seasons is caused by Earth’s tilt toward the Sun.

Seasons are determined by Earth’s tilt toward or away from the sun. The seasonal patterns change as the Earth revolves around the Sun and the tilt of Earth’s axis causes the angle of the Sun’s rays to change.

There is a pattern to the amount of daylight we get in each season. The Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the Sun for half of the year and away from the sun for the other half. The same is true of the Southern Hemisphere. When the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun, the sun’s rays are striking that part of Earth at a more direct angle. It is summer. When the Northern Hemisphere is tilted away from the Sun, the Sun’s rays are less direct, and that part of Earth is cooler. It is winter. Seasons in the Southern Hemisphere occur at opposite times of the year from those in the Northern Hemisphere. When it is summer in the Northern hemisphere, it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere.