Earth's axis tilt is approximately what angle?

Earth's axis tilt is approximately what angle?

• A. 0 degrees
• B. 23.5 degrees
• C. 45 degrees
• D. 90 degrees

Answer: (B)

The tilt of Earth’s axis relative to its orbit around the Sun drives the seasons, and that tilt is about 23.5 degrees. This means the axis isn’t straight up and down to the plane in which Earth travels around the Sun, but it’s angled so that different hemispheres receive varying amounts of sunlight through the year. When the Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the Sun, sunlight hits more directly and days are longer, producing summer; when it tilts away, sunlight is more oblique and days are shorter, producing winter. The angle is measured between Earth’s rotational axis and a line perpendicular to its orbital plane (the ecliptic). Today this tilt is around 23.5 degrees, though it slowly varies over long timescales. This is the value that explains the changing Sun’s height in the sky and the seasonal pattern we experience.

The tilt of Earth’s axis relative to its orbit around the Sun drives the seasons, and that tilt is about 23.5 degrees. This means the axis isn’t straight up and down to the plane in which Earth travels around the Sun, but it’s angled so that different hemispheres receive varying amounts of sunlight through the year. When the Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the Sun, sunlight hits more directly and days are longer, producing summer; when it tilts away, sunlight is more oblique and days are shorter, producing winter. The angle is measured between Earth’s rotational axis and a line perpendicular to its orbital plane (the ecliptic). Today this tilt is around 23.5 degrees, though it slowly varies over long timescales. This is the value that explains the changing Sun’s height in the sky and the seasonal pattern we experience.