Geography

 

What is Revolution?

Revolution is often used as a synonym for rotation. However, in many fields like astronomy and its related subjects, revolution is referred to as an orbital revolution. It is used when one body moves around another, while rotation means moving around the axis. For example, the Moon revolves around the Earth, and the Earth revolves around the Sun.

Rotation of the Earth

Earth rotates on its axis from west to east, and the Sun and the Moon appear to move from east to west across the sky. The spinning of the Earth around its axis is called ‘rotation’. The axis has an angle of 23 1/2º and is perpendicular to the plane of Earth’s orbit. This means the Earth is tilted on its axis, and because of this tilt, the northern and southern hemispheres lean in a direction away from the Sun. The rotation of the Earth divides it into a lit-up half and a dark half, which gives rise to day and night. The direction of the Earth’s rotation depends on the direction of viewing. When viewed looking down from the North Pole, Earth spins counterclockwise. On the contrary, when viewed looking down from the south pole, the earth spins in the clockwise direction.

Importance of Earth Rotation

Some of the importance of the rotation of the Earth are listed below:

• The Earth’s rotation creates the diurnal cycle of lightness and darkness, temperature and humidity changes.
• The Earth’s rotation causes tides in the oceans and seas.