It is also what produces the accompanying variations in Day and Night on Earth throughout the year, which continually alter local Sunrise and Sunsets Times around the world. Of course, it is Earth's annual cycle of changing tilt 'relative to the Sun' that-for the most part-produces our seasons.
The vantage of both large views is from directly above 0° latitude to show the entire portions of Earth rotating into sunrise and sunset respectively. In the right large view the Sun is setting (darkness is falling) at the western limits of Earth's shadow. In the left large view the Sun is rising (daylight is breaking) at the eastern limits of Earth's shadow. The two large views of our planet above show its current tilt relative to the Sun, revealing which parts are presently rotating into daylight (sunrise) and darkness (sunset). Though Earth's tilt of 23.44° 'relative to its orbital plane' stays essentially fixed over many human lifetimes, its tilt 'relative to the Sun' varies in a regular yearly cycle. View 'preceding' Earth in its orbit View 'trailing' Earth in its orbit
