Science & Life Skills

Learn how Earth's tilt and orbit around the sun create our four seasons.

Earth is tilted like a spinning top and stays tilted in the same direction all year. This tilt affects how sunlight hits different parts of Earth during winter and spring.

In summer, the North Pole tips toward the sun, making sunlight hit more directly and stay in the sky longer. While it's summer in the Northern Hemisphere, it's winter in the Southern Hemisphere.

Plants and other photosynthesizers depend on sunlight and respond to seasonal changes. In spring, ocean productivity increases, and forests grow green, while continents turn dark in winter from lack of photosynthesis.

Why Do We Have Different Seasons? | California Academy of Sciences