what happens when an temperate area is tilted toward the sun? when is it tilted away from it?

Answer 1

When it's tilted toward the sun, it receives more direct rays of sunlight and will heat up more quickly while holding heat longer. The opposite is true when it's tilted away (less direct light rays, less "heat-holding").

You'll notice that the summer solstice is the "longest day of the year," and that's because that's when the sun is at its highest point in the sky, taking longer to complete its daily cycle of rise and set simply because of relative position. However, that's not necessarily going to be the warmest day of the year - the surrounding days are almost as long, probably differing by a minute or so per day, so all the warmth builds up in the atmosphere and lingers around for a month or so. That's why July and August are generally warmer - the atmosphere and the ground trap a little more heat.

Similarly, the winter solstice, the "shortest day of the year," may not be the coldest - the coldest probably occurs in January or February.

Answer 2

This tilting is the cause for the changes in seasons. However because the temperate regions, the land masses at the Equator, do not get as much of a 'tilt' as the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, they do not experience that much variation in temperature.

Answer 3

Summer. Then Winter.