Show Rotation vs Revolution People often get confused between the terms “rotation” and “revolution.” Here we are about to discuss the concepts of rotation and revolution in relation to Earth. Rotation Rotation can be defined as the spinning of an object on its own axis. An axis may be defined as an imaginary line around which the object spins. We can understand this with the example of the Earth’s rotation. Earth rotates from west to east around an imaginary line which passes through the North and South poles and is perpendicular to the plane of the equator. This imaginary line is called the axis of Earth’s rotation. Due to this motion, the celestial bodies appear to move from east to west. Rotation of Earth results in the creation of time zones. Our Earth rotates around its axis at the rate of 15 degrees per hour. This rotation causes different noons at different locations on the planet. The rotation of Earth around its axis causes day and night. The total time taken by the Earth to complete its one rotation comes out to be around 24 hours. This movement of the Earth also brings about a flattening of the planet at the poles resulting in an oblate spheroid. The distance from poles to the center of Earth is a little bit less than that from the equator to the center. Revolution Revolution can be defined as movement of a body around another. Here, in this case, Earth revolves round the sun. Earth revolves around the sun in an elliptical orbit with the sun as its focus. It completes its cycle in a period of approximately 365 days. Earth is also tilted from its axis by the angle of 23 and half degrees. Changes of seasons on Earth are the combined effects of the Earth’s tilt on its axis and the Earth’s revolution around the sun. Rotation and revolution together cause day and night, changes of seasons, change in the length of day and night, circulation of air in the atmosphere, and many other geographical phenomenon. Summary: 1.Rotation is the spinning of Earth on an axis while revolution is the spinning of the Earth around the sun. 2.Earth’s rotation is completed in approximately 24 hrs while its revolution takes around 365 days. 3.Rotation causes day and night. Revolution causes different seasons. 4.Relative speed of rotation is maximum at the equator and slowest at the poles. Relative speed of revolution is fastest 5.when the sun is closest to the Earth and is slowest when it is at the farthest end. 6.Earth rotates on its axis while it revolves around the sun.
Custom Search (13 votes, average: 3.77 out of 5) Loading... Email This Post : If you like this article or our site. Please spread the word. Share it with your friends/family. Without the existence of phenomena like rotation and revolution, we won’t be having either day/night or seasons on Earth. The primary difference between rotation and revolution is that rotation is a motion of an object around its own axis. On the other hand, a revolution is a motion of an object around another object. In this article, we will talk about some of the exclusive rotation and revolution differences. Not to mention, we will also talk about some of the similarities between them too. But before going into a deep discussion, let me give you a short and crisp review of them in a tabular form. Let’s dive right in…!!! What is Rotation?By definition, Rotation is a motion of an object around its own axis. The movement of the earth on its own axis is a perfect example of rotation. Not to mention, the earth takes approximately 24 hours to complete a single rotation on its own axis. In other words, when the earth completes one rotation on its axis, one day is over on earth. The rotation of the earth is also responsible for the formation of day and night here. In fact, just because the earth rotates on its axis from the west to the east direction, the sun rises in the east and sets its the west. Since the earth rotates on its own axis at the rotational rate of 15 degrees per hour, we have different time zones on different continents as well as in different countries around the world. Not to mention, lines of longitudes also play a vital role to specify different time zones around the globe. Some Examples of Rotational Motion in Real LifeApart from the rotation of the earth on its own axis, here is a list of some other examples of rotational motion in real life:
What is Revolution?By definition, Revolution is a motion of an object around another object. The motion of the earth around the sun is the perfect example of revolution. The earth takes approximately 1 year to complete a single revolution around the sun. In other words, when the earth completes one revolution around the sun, one year is over on earth. Earth revolves around the sun in a counter-clockwise direction. In addition, the revolution of the earth around the sun is also responsible for the formation of different seasons around the globe. And, yeah, the earth’s axial tilt of 23.5 degrees also plays a vital role. To put it together, both the revolution of the earth and its axial tilt are responsible for the formation of different seasons (Equinoxes and Solstices) on earth. Some Examples of Revolutional Motion in Real LifeApart from the revolution of the earth around the sun, here is a list of some other examples of revolutionary motion in real life:
That’s it for this post. If you like this article, share it if you like, like it if you share it. You can also find us on Mix, Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook. Hey man, If you have come this far, do give us feedback in the comment section. It would make my day. You can also make a donation. Your donations will help us to run our website and serve you BETTER. Cheers!!! Many people often misinterpret these two concepts as they think that these two are same. But this is not so, as they differ from one another in the sense that rotation does not change the position of the object, but revolution does. So, here we’ve explained the difference between rotation and revolution in detail, take a read. Content: Rotation Vs Revolution
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Definition of RotationThe term ‘rotation’ is defined as the movement of an object, in a circular manner, about a certain point, i.e. turn around, its own axis. There exist an imaginary line known as the rotational axis around which a three-dimensional object rotates. In the rotation, every point makes a circle around the central point. So, there is an equal distance from the center to any point of the shape. It is expressed in terms of degrees, wherein when the rotation is performed clockwise, the degrees is negative, while an anticlockwise rotation, will result in positive degrees. The most popular example of rotation is the earth’s rotation, which takes approximately 24 hours to complete it, causing day and night. Definition of RevolutionThe term ‘revolution’ is used to describe a motion, wherein an object moves in a circular direction around an object or centre, in a fixed path or orbit. It involves travelling around an axis outside the object, i.e. external axis. The distance traveled by an object, in one revolution, around the circle, is nothing but its circumference. The time taken by an object to complete one revolution around the circle is known as the period, represented by T. The revolution of the Earth around the Sun is in an anticlockwise manner, which takes 365 days and 6 hours to complete. It is the only reason for causing seasons to change.
The difference between rotation and revolution can be drawn clearly on the following grounds:
ConclusionTherefore, with the above discussion, you might have gained ample knowledge about the two terms, and will not get confused between them in future. While rotation means spinning around its own axis, revolution means moving around another object. Taking the example of the Earth, which rotates 366 times to complete one revolution around the Sun. |