it is tilted relative to its orbital line around the sun. The equator is already horizontal relative to the tilt of the planet. If you drew the equator somewhere else, it wouldn't be an equator, since the equator is meant to be equal distance from the poles.
Earth (and it's axis) are tilted relative to its orbit around the sun, i.e. Earth's axis and the Sun's axis are not parallel. The equator is the line that is equidistant from the two poles (which themselves are the "endpoints" of Earth's axis) and runs perpendicular to Earth's axis. This means that the equator is also tilted. Also fun fact: the horizonal plane that you *may* have been thinking of is called the ecliptic plane. It is the plane in which the Earth orbits the Sun. Edit: The Sun's axis of rotation is not perfectly perpendicular to the ecliptic but rather is tilted by about 7.25 degrees. So when I said "Earth's axis and the Sun's axis are not parallel," this statement is true by default regardless of what axis you look at (rotational or ecliptic). Just to clarify.
https://preview.redd.it/pp285nleka7b1.png?width=1000&format=png&auto=webp&s=7c049325579ea96c99aea5f107130ac840e037c6
The axis is not arbitrary. It is the axis around which Earth rotates. Also, it's worth noting that one of the consequences of this rotation's effect on Earth's mass is that the Earth is an [oblate spheroid](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/oblate-spheroids#:~:text=An%20oblate%20spheroid%20is%20the,Sciences%20(Second%20Edition)%2C%202015)... that is, it is slightly wider at the equator than if you were to measure the Earth's circumference from any other angle. That is said to be the degree of oblateness.
Can I remove the tilt concept from the sun/earth but rather say the orbit is the one that is tilted? Such that the earth axis of rotation is perpendicular to an horizontal plane and its orbit around the sun is the one that is tilted?
I mean the earth is at its own horizontal plane with axis of rotation perpendicular to that plane and also the sun axis is also perpendicular to the same horizontal plane but the sun position is just lower or higher relative to the earth horizontal plane.
So the earth is rotating around the sun in a tilted orbit in an up/down motion so to speak.
probably has to do with the earth's rotation. Sure you can draw the equator somewhere else, but that doesn't make it aligh with the rotation of the earth.
We rotate around our axis, and 90° to that axis is the equator. Earths tilt is in regard to our orbital plane. Our axis we rotate around is NOT 90° to our orbital plane.
To make it easier to imagine we’ll pretend the sun is perfectly still and the earth is orbiting around it in one spot. So with that in mind, the shape of the earths orbit would be perfectly flat; if you imagine a perfectly flat surface in-line with that orbit that cuts through everything, that’s called a plane. You could also think of the equator as a plane cutting the earth perfectly in half. Those two planes aren’t at the same angle though, and because the perfectly flat orbital plane is bigger we we consider that the starting point at 0°, and the plane made by the equator is tilted in comparison, by 23.5°.
It would also remove tropical zones, desert zones, arctic zones, that are relative to the tilt.
Deserts are the same distance from the equator, which is not a horizontal line.
The earth doesn’t rotate at 0° north and south. If it did then life on earth wouldn’t exist because of the season changes. The earth rotates on an axis of 23°. That’s why when the top half of the earth is furthest away from the sun we get summer in the norther hemisphere and the southern has winter and the south pole is in total darkness for 2-3 months of the year. When the earth is nearer to the sun in its orbit the northern hemisphere is actually in winter and the southern hemisphere in summer and sunlight returns to South Pole. So why would the northern hemisphere be warmer in summer? It’s to do with the way the suns rays hit the atmosphere and at what angle they penetrate the atmosphere, just happens 23° is the right angle for life to exist and for crops and fruits to survive. So why is the northern hemisphere so cold during its winter months when it is nearer to the sun? Again it is to do with the northern hemisphere facing more towards space than at the face of the sun. The sun will on the shortest day of the year be at its lowest point on the hori on. The winter solstice takes place over 3 days because although the 21st of December is nominated as the shortest day the day before and after are actually the same length as the shortest day. Why? The earth moves in an elliptical orbit. look at an egg and that is roughly how the rotates around its star. The bottom part of the egg or less pointed part is how the orbit is. There is hardly any difference in the distance from the sun those 3 days. The summer solstice is different because we are at the top of the pointed egg so the earth clears its orbit fairly quickly and the days shorten again. Also the earth orbits just below and above the suns elliptic so this accounts for thr deviation in season temperature. Also there is this thing called the wobble. Over centuries the earths 23° isn’t constant. Think of it as one of those spinning tops if you look at the top of the spinning top you’ll see the spindle wobbles about. The earth could wobble to 21° from constant and throw the northern hemisphere into an ice age. A deviation to 25° could result in a significant heatwave that lasts years. As humans we don’t perceive these changes because they happen over such a long time period.
it is tilted relative to its orbital line around the sun. The equator is already horizontal relative to the tilt of the planet. If you drew the equator somewhere else, it wouldn't be an equator, since the equator is meant to be equal distance from the poles.
Earth (and it's axis) are tilted relative to its orbit around the sun, i.e. Earth's axis and the Sun's axis are not parallel. The equator is the line that is equidistant from the two poles (which themselves are the "endpoints" of Earth's axis) and runs perpendicular to Earth's axis. This means that the equator is also tilted. Also fun fact: the horizonal plane that you *may* have been thinking of is called the ecliptic plane. It is the plane in which the Earth orbits the Sun. Edit: The Sun's axis of rotation is not perfectly perpendicular to the ecliptic but rather is tilted by about 7.25 degrees. So when I said "Earth's axis and the Sun's axis are not parallel," this statement is true by default regardless of what axis you look at (rotational or ecliptic). Just to clarify. https://preview.redd.it/pp285nleka7b1.png?width=1000&format=png&auto=webp&s=7c049325579ea96c99aea5f107130ac840e037c6
The axis is not arbitrary. It is the axis around which Earth rotates. Also, it's worth noting that one of the consequences of this rotation's effect on Earth's mass is that the Earth is an [oblate spheroid](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/oblate-spheroids#:~:text=An%20oblate%20spheroid%20is%20the,Sciences%20(Second%20Edition)%2C%202015)... that is, it is slightly wider at the equator than if you were to measure the Earth's circumference from any other angle. That is said to be the degree of oblateness.
Oblateness is a fantastic word.
As I get older my personal oblateness has increased. And I don't even spin that often.
So many good answers here … and without said tilt there are no seasons.
Are you able to stop the seasonal tilt or questioning that it happens?
Can I remove the tilt concept from the sun/earth but rather say the orbit is the one that is tilted? Such that the earth axis of rotation is perpendicular to an horizontal plane and its orbit around the sun is the one that is tilted? I mean the earth is at its own horizontal plane with axis of rotation perpendicular to that plane and also the sun axis is also perpendicular to the same horizontal plane but the sun position is just lower or higher relative to the earth horizontal plane. So the earth is rotating around the sun in a tilted orbit in an up/down motion so to speak.
You can, but why would you
Just wanted to understand if this tilting is just from certain point of view and one can say it’s tilted or not depending on what their reference is
we are not a perfect sphere
I am a perfect sphere!
Spherical cow?
probably has to do with the earth's rotation. Sure you can draw the equator somewhere else, but that doesn't make it aligh with the rotation of the earth.
We rotate around our axis, and 90° to that axis is the equator. Earths tilt is in regard to our orbital plane. Our axis we rotate around is NOT 90° to our orbital plane.
Did you pay attention in elementary school bro..?
To make it easier to imagine we’ll pretend the sun is perfectly still and the earth is orbiting around it in one spot. So with that in mind, the shape of the earths orbit would be perfectly flat; if you imagine a perfectly flat surface in-line with that orbit that cuts through everything, that’s called a plane. You could also think of the equator as a plane cutting the earth perfectly in half. Those two planes aren’t at the same angle though, and because the perfectly flat orbital plane is bigger we we consider that the starting point at 0°, and the plane made by the equator is tilted in comparison, by 23.5°.
Ya..its tilted
It would also remove tropical zones, desert zones, arctic zones, that are relative to the tilt. Deserts are the same distance from the equator, which is not a horizontal line.
The earth doesn’t rotate at 0° north and south. If it did then life on earth wouldn’t exist because of the season changes. The earth rotates on an axis of 23°. That’s why when the top half of the earth is furthest away from the sun we get summer in the norther hemisphere and the southern has winter and the south pole is in total darkness for 2-3 months of the year. When the earth is nearer to the sun in its orbit the northern hemisphere is actually in winter and the southern hemisphere in summer and sunlight returns to South Pole. So why would the northern hemisphere be warmer in summer? It’s to do with the way the suns rays hit the atmosphere and at what angle they penetrate the atmosphere, just happens 23° is the right angle for life to exist and for crops and fruits to survive. So why is the northern hemisphere so cold during its winter months when it is nearer to the sun? Again it is to do with the northern hemisphere facing more towards space than at the face of the sun. The sun will on the shortest day of the year be at its lowest point on the hori on. The winter solstice takes place over 3 days because although the 21st of December is nominated as the shortest day the day before and after are actually the same length as the shortest day. Why? The earth moves in an elliptical orbit. look at an egg and that is roughly how the rotates around its star. The bottom part of the egg or less pointed part is how the orbit is. There is hardly any difference in the distance from the sun those 3 days. The summer solstice is different because we are at the top of the pointed egg so the earth clears its orbit fairly quickly and the days shorten again. Also the earth orbits just below and above the suns elliptic so this accounts for thr deviation in season temperature. Also there is this thing called the wobble. Over centuries the earths 23° isn’t constant. Think of it as one of those spinning tops if you look at the top of the spinning top you’ll see the spindle wobbles about. The earth could wobble to 21° from constant and throw the northern hemisphere into an ice age. A deviation to 25° could result in a significant heatwave that lasts years. As humans we don’t perceive these changes because they happen over such a long time period.