The sun rises in the east due to the rotation of the Earth on its axis, which creates the illusion that the sun is moving from east to west in the sky.
Our planet rotates around an imaginary axis connecting the two poles, somewhat like a top. This movement, called Earth's rotation, takes about 24 hours to complete one full turn: that's what defines our day. During this rotation, each region of the Earth moves from shadow to sunlight, causing the day-night cycle. Viewed from the North Pole, this movement occurs counterclockwise. And it's precisely this rotation to the east that gives the impression that the Sun always rises in the east and sets in the west.
We often talk about the Sun rising in the East, but be careful: it doesn't actually rise; it's us who are moving! Every day, the Earth rotates from West to East. This movement gives us the misleading impression that our star rises from the horizon in the East and sets in the West. It's a bit like when you're on a train: you would swear that the landscape is moving past you, but in reality, it's you who are moving. This is called the apparent motion of the Sun. This simple yet deceptive phenomenon explains why our daily references are so well aligned with this idea: a bright morning on one side, a dark evening on the other.
Since antiquity, the East has been associated in various cultures with renewal, light, and life. In ancient Egypt, the East was considered the place of the sun's rebirth and symbolically represented birth and immortality. Many temples and monuments are oriented in this direction to celebrate the daily appearance of the sun. In Asian cultures as well, the East regularly symbolizes new opportunities, while the West evokes rather endings and rest. This profound symbolism is naturally explained by the regular rising of the sun in the east. It has permanently influenced religious beliefs, rites, and even the organization of space and homes in several ancient civilizations. Even today, this idea persists in certain expressions, such as when we talk about the "rising sun" to refer to Japan located in the east of Asia.
Your latitude (your north or south position on Earth) influences how you perceive the sunrise. Near the equator, the Sun rises almost straight up from the horizon, giving the impression that it climbs quickly in the sky. As you move toward the poles, this trajectory becomes increasingly oblique, with the Sun seeming to glide along the horizon rather than rising directly into the sky. Beyond the polar circles, during certain times of the year, the Sun does not rise at all, leading to the famous "polar nights," while at other times, it can remain visible all summer long ("midnight sun"). All of this is due to the tilt of the Earth's axis, which truly transforms the experience of sunrise depending on where you are.
Historically, several civilizations have oriented their cities or temples towards the east, viewing this direction as a symbol of renewal, spirituality, or rebirth.
Venus, nicknamed the morning star, can sometimes be seen in the east just before sunrise, bright and highly visible in the morning sky.
Contrary to a common belief, the sun rises precisely in the east only two days a year: on the spring and autumn equinoxes. For the rest of the time, it rises slightly more to the northeast or southeast.
The sunset and sunrise have a longer visual duration than their physical reality due to atmospheric refraction: thus, when we see the sun above the horizon, it is actually already slightly below it.
No. The Sun rises exactly in the East only during the equinoxes (around March 20-21 and September 22-23 each year). The rest of the time, its rising point varies slightly to the Northeast or Southeast, depending on the latitude and the time of year.
The times of sunrise and sunset change because the Earth's axis of rotation is tilted in relation to its orbital plane around the Sun. This tilt causes a variation in the angle at which sunlight hits the Earth depending on the seasons, thereby altering the length of day and night throughout the year.
The Earth's rotation is the movement of the Earth on its own axis, which lasts about 24 hours and causes the alternation between day and night. The Earth's revolution is the movement of the Earth around the Sun, which takes approximately 365.25 days, thereby causing the changes of the seasons.
This feeling of movement comes from the Earth's rotation on its axis, from West to East, over the course of approximately 24 hours. The Sun does not move significantly in our daily time scale; it is our Earth's rotation that creates this illusion.
In many ancient cultures, the East, the direction of the sunrise, was often seen as a symbol of renewal and life. The rising sun marked the end of the night, the return of reassuring light after darkness, and provided a stable reference for creating calendars or organizing religious and cultural rituals.
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