The Earth rotates around an imaginary line, called the axis. This axis runs through the North and the South Pole. If the rotating Earth is viewed from the North Pole, it seems rotating from west to east that is counter-clockwise. Due to this movement or rotation of the Earth from west to east, we experience day and night cycle. This whole cycle of day and night takes 24 hours, and is called the daily motion of the Earth. The Earth rotates at about 1600 km per hour at the equator. But since the surface area of the earth is so vast with diverse topography, we do not feel the rotational movement of the Earth.
Tilt of the Earth’s Axis: The Earth’s axis is an imaginary line around which the Earth rotates. It is tilted at a fixed angle of 23.5°. Due to this angular tilt, the Earth faces the Sun in a differential manner. Or in other words, this tilt helps the Sun to shine on different latitudes at different angles throughout the year.
Day and Night Formation
The Earth is tilted at an angle of 23.5°. The sun rays fall on the surface of the earth, but due to the spherical shape only half of the globe receives the sunlight. The portion which receives the sunlight experiences day whereas the opposite side has night. This division is defined as the circle of illumination. As the Earth rotates on its axis and revolves around the sun, the face that had night slowly gets the sunlight and experiences day. This period of rotation is called Earth day and the duration is 24 hours.
