Created by Shannon Dodds

Rotation

The Earth rotates about its axis in a ________________direction.

The Earth makes one rotation every _______. This might seem slow but remember that the Earth’s circumference is 25,000 miles around. This means the Earth rotates at a speed of 1040 miles per hour!

The Earth’s rotation gives us our day and night.

Counterclockwise

24 hrs

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5041127474937930014

Orbit

The Earth revolves around the sun in a _______________ direction.

It takes _______ Earth days to complete one orbit around the sun. Every four years we add an extra day to make up for the 0.25 days. We call this _________.

The Earth is moving around the sun in its orbit at a speed of 67000 miles per hour.

The Earth is held in orbit by the sun’s gravity and the Earth’s inertia.

Counterclockwise 365.2

5

Leap year

Seasons

The Earth is tilted on its axis at an angle of ____ degrees.

When the northern hemisphere is tilted towards the sun there is more direct sunlight and the northern hemisphere becomes warmer. The longest day of direct sunlight is called the ______________. When the northern hemisphere is summer the southern hemisphere is winter.

Summer Solstice

23.5

Seasons

When the northern hemisphere is tilted away from the sun there is less direct sunlight and the northern hemisphere becomes colder. The shortest day of indirect sunlight is called the _____________. When the northern hemisphere is winter the southern hemisphere is summer.

The days where the northern and southern hemispheres have equal amount of direct sunlight are called the spring or autumn ________.

Winter Solstice

equinox

http://www.cs.sbcc.cc.ca.us/~physics/flash/LengthofDay.swf