Why Do We Have Seasons and How Does the Earth's Tilt Play a Role?

The Earth’s tilt is why we have seasons, and it works like a giant spinning toy.

Imagine Earth is like a top that's tilted at an angle, about 23 degrees, as it spins around the Sun. When one side of the Earth tilts toward the Sun, that part gets more sunlight and gets warmer, that’s summer! The other side, tilted away from the Sun, gets less light and is cooler, that’s winter.

Think about a lamp shining on your bedroom. If you turn the bed so it faces the lamp, the light hits you more directly, just like summer. But if you turn the bed away from the lamp, the light feels softer and less direct, like winter.

As Earth keeps spinning around the Sun, this tilt stays the same, which means different parts of Earth get more or less sunlight throughout the year, that’s how we get spring, summer, autumn, and winter in a repeating cycle.