Correct Answer:
C. Earth is revolving around the sun
The correct answer is Earth is revolving around the sun because seasonal cycles are driven by Earth's annual orbital path combined with the fixed tilt of its rotational axis.
- Step 1 (Axial Tilt and Orbit): The Earth orbits the Sun once every 365.25 days while tilted at an angle of 23.5 degrees relative to its orbital plane.
- Step 2 (Solar Intensity): As Earth completes this path, different parts of the planet receive varying concentrations of direct sunlight at different times of the year, creating winter, spring, summer, and autumn.
- Incorrect Options:
- Moon is revolving around the earth is incorrect because the lunar cycle dictates ocean tides and lunar phases, holding no control over planetary seasonal shifts.
- Earth is revolving around its axis is incorrect because Earth spinning on its axis generates the daily day-and-night cycle every 24 hours, not seasonal changes.
- Planet Mars is attracting the sun is incorrect because Martian gravitational forces have a negligible effect on the orbital mechanics or climate parameters of Earth.
The season changes because of C. Earth is revolving around the sun.
Here’s why:
- The Earth’s axis is tilted at an angle of about 23.5 degrees relative to its plane of orbit around the Sun.
- As Earth travels around the Sun, different parts of the Earth are tilted more towards or away from the Sun at different times of year.
- This tilt affects the amount of sunlight that reaches different parts of the Earth, leading to variations in temperature and creating the seasons.
The Moon’s revolution around the Earth (which takes about 27.3 days) affects tides but not seasons. Earth’s rotation on its axis creates day and night cycles. Mars’ gravitational pull is insignificant compared to the Sun’s and wouldn’t cause seasonal changes.