Motions of the Earth quiz

The Earth's axis makes an angle with its orbital plane of:

Day and night are caused by the Earth's:

One revolution of the Earth around the Sun takes:

The summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere falls on:

On 22 December, the sun's rays fall vertically on the:

Day and night are equal all over the world on:

A leap year has:

The path of the Earth around the Sun is called its:

In a leap year, February has:

When it is summer in the Northern Hemisphere, it is:

What would happen if the Earth did not rotate? (2 marks)

Why do we have seasons? (2 marks)

What is an orbital plane? (2 marks)

Why is 21 June the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere? (2 marks)

What happens at the North Pole during the winter solstice? (2 marks)

Why are equinoxes so called? (2 marks)

Why do we not feel the Earth rotating? (2 marks)

What is the shape of the Earth's orbit? (2 marks)

Why is it warmer at noon than in the morning? (2 marks)

Name the seasons in the Southern Hemisphere on 21 March and 23 September. (2 marks)

The Earth rotates 360 degrees in 24 hours. How many degrees does it rotate in 1 hour, in 8 hours and in 30 minutes? (3 marks)

Count the number of leap years from 2001 to 2040. List them. (3 marks)

A year has 365.25 days. Find the number of hours in such a year. How many hours are there in 4 such years? (3 marks)

Find the number of days from 21 June (summer solstice) to 22 December (winter solstice), counting from 22 June to 22 December. (3 marks)

The Tropic of Cancer is at 23.5 degrees N and the Tropic of Capricorn at 23.5 degrees S. Find the total angular distance between them. If 1 degree is about 111 km, find the approximate distance. (3 marks)

Read the passage and answer the questions. Riya called her cousin in Sydney, Australia, on 25 December. Riya was wearing a sweater in Delhi, while her cousin said he was at the beach enjoying the hot sun. (i) Why was it cold in Delhi? (ii) Why was it hot in Sydney? (iii) On which line of latitude were the sun's rays falling vertically around that time? (5 marks)

Read the passage and answer the questions. In Norway, during June, the sun does not set for many days. People call it the "land of the midnight sun". In December, there are days when the sun does not rise at all. (i) Why does the sun not set in June? (ii) Why does it not rise in December? (iii) Which feature of the Earth causes this? (5 marks)

Read the passage and answer the questions. In a dark room, a teacher held a torch towards a globe tilted on its stand. She slowly turned the globe from west to east. Students saw that one half of the globe was lit while the other half was dark. (i) What did the torch represent? (ii) What does the turning of the globe show? (iii) What is the line dividing the lit and dark halves called? (5 marks)

Read the passage and answer the questions. In the year 2024, Aarav was born on 29 February. His friend asked him how often he could celebrate his real birthday. (i) Why does 29 February come only in some years? (ii) In which year will Aarav next have a 29 February birthday? (iii) How many 29 February birthdays will he have had by the year 2040, including his day of birth? (5 marks)

Read the passage and answer the questions. On 21 March, a student in Chennai noted that the day lasted about 12 hours and the night about 12 hours. On 21 June, the day lasted about 13 hours. (i) What is 21 March called? (ii) Why was the day longer on 21 June? (iii) On which other date would day and night again be nearly equal? (5 marks)

Draw a diagram of the Earth's revolution showing the positions on the solstices and equinoxes. Explain how the seasons change in the Northern Hemisphere. (6 marks)

Explain the rotation of the Earth and its effects. Draw a labelled diagram showing day and night and the circle of illumination, and explain why places in India see sunrise before places in Europe. (6 marks)

Explain why there is a leap year. Show by calculation how a quarter day each year adds up, and list the leap years between 2020 and 2050. (6 marks)

Describe the conditions on 21 June and 22 December in both hemispheres, including the position of the sun's vertical rays, day length and season. Draw diagrams for both dates. (6 marks)

Explain the effect of the tilt of the Earth's axis on the length of day and night and on seasons. Draw a diagram showing the tilted axis and the inclination angles, and explain what would happen if the axis were not tilted. (6 marks)