What causes the seasons?

What causes the seasons?

• A. Water bulges toward Moon
• B. Caused by Earth's tilt, NOT distance from the sun
• C. The regular rise and fall of the ocean's surface influenced by the moon
• D. Sun and Moon aligned; strongest

Answer: (B)

Seasons come from the tilt of Earth's axis relative to its orbit around the Sun. That tilt changes how directly sunlight hits each hemisphere and how long the Sun stays above the horizon. When a hemisphere tilts toward the Sun, the Sun climbs higher in the sky, days lengthen, and more solar energy reaches that region—summer. When it tilts away, the Sun is lower, days are shorter, and there’s less energy—winter. The distance from the Sun does vary, but that distance has a much smaller effect on seasons than the axial tilt, and tides or the alignment of the Sun and Moon relate to oceans, not seasonal heating.

Seasons come from the tilt of Earth's axis relative to its orbit around the Sun. That tilt changes how directly sunlight hits each hemisphere and how long the Sun stays above the horizon. When a hemisphere tilts toward the Sun, the Sun climbs higher in the sky, days lengthen, and more solar energy reaches that region—summer. When it tilts away, the Sun is lower, days are shorter, and there’s less energy—winter. The distance from the Sun does vary, but that distance has a much smaller effect on seasons than the axial tilt, and tides or the alignment of the Sun and Moon relate to oceans, not seasonal heating.