Ask an Explainer

Q:

Why do the stars always rise in the east and set in the west?

A:

The same reason that the sun (our closest star) rises in the east and sets in the west: our planet is rotating west to east.

 

If you stand up and turn around clockwise, the world around you seems to spin counter clockwise. This is the same thing we experience here on planet Earth. While we rotate, half the time we face the sun, and it seems to rise and set, and the other half we face away, and the stars appear to rise and set. This rotation is also why we have days and nights. 

Ask an Explainer
Categories: