Astronomy Question for TOM...

[Paintchucker]

Not quite sure how we got on the subject at work, but we were discussing the sunset. I live in ATLANTA, GA. During the winter, the sun sets mainly in the SW. My friend was saying that in the summer that the sun actually sets in the NW. Thats seems a little too far north to me.

Can you settle the arguement and/or direct me to a site that would give the answer???

Thanks In Advance,
Rob

[Bonx0007]

You friend is correct. When we the seasons change that is when the northern hemisphere is closer or farther away from the sun. In summer the northern hemisphere of the globe is closer to the sun throughout its orbit and when it is winter the northern hemisphere is tilted back away from the sun throughout its orbit. This tilting of the earths axis is what gives you the varying sunset locations. In fifth grade my class mapped the change of the sunset it was quite interesting. The same goes for the sunrise. If you use some trigonometric equations with sin and cos you can see this to be true. Good Luck.

[mrhooie]