Seasons 93 Part l: Earth-Sun Distance Drawing not to scale Listed below are the

Question

Seasons 93 Part l: Earth-Sun Distance Drawing not to scale Listed below are the distances, in kilometers (km), between the Sun and Earth for four months of the year. The drawing at the right shows four different locations of Earth during its orbit around the Sun. Note that for each location drawn, Earth is correctly shown with its rotational axis tilted at an angle of 23.5 Month June September March Earth-Sun Distance 147.2 million km 152.0 million km 150.2 million km 149.0 million km 1) Is the direction that Earth's axis is tited changing as Earth orbits the Sun? 2) Using the information listed above, does Earth stay the same distance from the Sun throughout the year? If not, what month(s) and during which season (for the Northern Hemisphere) is Earth closest to the Sun? Farthest from the Sun? 3) Would you say the temperature stays approximately the same every month of the year at your location? 4) Are the seasons (summer or winter) the same in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres at the same time? When it is summer in the Northern Hemisphere, what season is it in the Southern Hemisphere? 5) Consider the following discussion between two students about the cause of the seasons. Student 1: I know that it's hotter in the summer and colder in the winter, so we must Student 2: I disagree. Although the distance between Earth and the Sun does change be closer to the Sun in the summer than in the winter throughout the year, I don't believe that the seasons and changes in Earth's surface temperature are caused by the distance between the Surn and Earth. If the seasons were due to the Sun-Earth distance, then both hemispheres of Earth would have the same seasons at the same time. Do you agree or disagree with either or both of the students? Explain your reasoni LECTURE-TUTORIALS FOR INTRODUCTORY ASTROWOMY THIRD EDITION © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.

Explanation / Answer

Yes. I agree with student 2. If the Earth's seasons were due to the Earth-Sun distance then both the hemisphere should have same season at a time but in contrast when northern hemisphere has winter, southern hemisphere has summer and vice versa.

The actual season are due to orientation of tilt axis of Earth towards the sun. If the orientation is towards the north then northern hemisphere will receive more light and there will be summer where as southern hemisphere will receive less light and there will be winter.

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