Subtitles section Play video Print subtitles Our planet has a terminator. No, not a time traveling humanoid robot, but a line where its light and dark side meet. On Earth we see the Sun rise from the East and set in the West. But if you were looking straight down from space, you would see half the planet lit, and the other half in total darkness. That's the terminator. The terminator, also called solar terminator or the “twilight zone” moves around our planet once a day. The Earth is constantly rotating, and it's got a little tilt to it. Our planet orbits the sun at a 23.5 degree angle. That axial tilt causes one pole to be facing the Sun, and the other pole facing away, and that gives our planet its four seasons. The terminator is a guide for solar-powered low earth orbit satellites. They ride the line in total sunlight to take pictures of Earth.So while the terminator doesn't really do anything, it is good for science! You can watch new episodes of Space Crafts right here every Wednesday. In this edition, we break out everyone's favorite elementary school science experiment to explain how galactic ice volcanoes erupt on Enceladus. Thanks for watching and make sure to subscribe!
B1 US terminator planet earth tilt sun pole Everything You Need to Know About the Earth's Terminator 903 13 Jerry Liu posted on 2019/04/25 More Share Save Report Video vocabulary