Skip Navigation Links weather.gov 
NOAA logo-Select to go to the NOAA homepage NDBC Title GraphicClick to go to NDBC home page   Select to go to the NWS homepage
Home About Us Contact Us
 
 
    
    Station List

 Data Access
    Mobile Access
    Interactive Maps
         All Stations
         DART®
    Obs Search
    Ship Obs Report
    BuoyCAMs
    TAO
    DODS
    OceanSITES
    HF Radar
    OSMC
    Dial-A-Buoy
    RSS Feeds Image indicating link to RSS feed access page
    Web Widget
    Web Data Guide
    Maintenance Schedule
    Station Status Report

 Program Info
    TAO
    DART®
    IOOS®

 Publications
    NDBC PEA
    NDBC FONSI
    NDBC DQC Handbook

 Visitor Information
 
USA.gov is the U.S. government's official web portal to all federal, state and local government web resources and services.

What causes the earth to experience different seasons?

Earth's hemispheres

Have you ever wondered why the earth experiences Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer? Generally, the Northern Hemisphere will experience different climate conditions than the Southern Hemisphere. For instance, one hemisphere will experience the cold conditions of winter while the other hemisphere experiences the warmer conditions of summer. This is illustrated in the picture at left which shows the Northern Hemisphere countries of the U.S., Canada, and Mexico experiencing the warm conditions of summer while the Southern Hemisphere experiences the cooler conditions of winter. The image on the right shows the reverse: the Northern Hemisphere is experiencing Winter while the Southern Hemisphere experiences Summer.

Did you know that our four seasons exist because of the tilt of the earth on its axis and because of the earth's orbit around the sun? The manner in which this factor produces our seasons is very easy to explain. Take a few moments to think about how this may occur.

Answer