Hi, I'm Marley and I'm the science dog! I love the seasons! Do you know how the seasons work? Let's go on an adventure, and I'll tell you about the seasons.

Summer and Summer Solstice

Summer is caused because the Earth is on an angle. This is called Angle of Inclination. The Earths angle is 23.5 degrees. This makes it so that the sun's rays can hit the Earth in a straight line this is called Direct Light. In the summer the Earth is actually farther from the sun than in the winter. The day we are furthest from the sun is called Aphelion. When the Northern Hemisphere is having summer it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere. The Summer solstice is the longest day of the year, or when we have the most sunlight! In 2018 Summer starts on June 21st.

Fall and Autumnal Equinox

Fall is caused because the Earth gets to a point in it's rotation around the sun where the day light hours are equal. This is what an Equinox is. In the U.S.A and other countries people set their clocks back an hour so in Spring they can have an extra hour of sun light. In the start of Fall is September 22nd 2018.

Winter and Winter Solstice

Winter is caused because like summer the Earth is on a Axis. During winter the Earth is tilted away from the sun. This causes Indirect sunlight, or when the suns rays don't hit the Earth in a straight line. During winter it is actually summer in the opposite hemisphere. In the winter you are closer to the sun, you are just colder because of indirect sunlight. The day you are closet to the sun is Perihelion. The reason we have Perihelion and Aphelion is because of our Elliptical Orbit. Winter starts on December 21st 2018.