What direction does the Earth spin? Please explain if you know more! Thanx.
2006-08-07 12:03:51 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
The counter clockwise answers are correct, but try this experiment for fun. Get a globe and hold it out at eye level with the north pole pointing up. Now imagine that you are on the sun looking down on the earth. Rotate the globe slowly counterclockwise and notice that the East Coast of the United States will slowly come into view. At the same time, the West Coast should still be beyond the horizon. Since you are standing on the sun, this means daylight is now hitting the East Coast but it has not yet reached out west. Rotate the globe a little more until you see the West Coast. Now the dawn sunrays are hitting the West Coast. As dawn is striking the West, notice that the East Coast is facing you more directly and so people on the East Coast would have to look more straight up to see the sun (more like what happens during midday). As you keep rotating the globe, eventually the East Coast will slip over to the opposite horizon and night will start for folks back in New York. Meanwhile, you should still see the West Coast and Hawaii being only somewhat late in the day. Looking further west, Japan and China will soon be coming around into morning as you keep moving the globe to bring nightfall to the West Coast.
Have fun and learn at the same time!
2006-08-07 12:24:48 · answer #1 · answered by Eric G 2 · 7⤊ 2⤋
It's easy my friend.
If the sun, moon, stars "appear" to move east to west across the sky during the course of a day, it is simply because the Earth is rotating west to east.
same is if you turn on the spot, the room appears to rotate the other way.
Same as when you go along in a car, train, or whatever, the landscape appears to go the other way.
Just think, think, think, before you ask an obvious question.
2006-08-07 22:42:15 · answer #2 · answered by nick s 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
From the west towards the east. If you were in space looking down on the North Pole the direction would be clockwise.
2006-08-07 19:11:51 · answer #3 · answered by Chug-a-Lug 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you're looking down on a globe, that is, you're looking at the north pole, the direction of earth's spin is counter-clockwise.
2006-08-07 19:12:05 · answer #4 · answered by extton 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
When viewed from directly above the north pole, the earth appears to be rotating counter-clockwise. When viewed for the normal "globe" perspective, the continents appear to move from left to right
2006-08-07 19:11:19 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
actually the earth spins from the west towards the east.
2006-08-07 19:26:04 · answer #6 · answered by D k T 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it appears to move couter-clockwise, or right..
2006-08-07 19:13:02 · answer #7 · answered by imacatholic1 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋