Night facts for kids
Night is the time when the Sun is not visible in the sky. It happens after dusk (when the sun sets) and before dawn (when the sun rises). The opposite of night is day.
The exact start and end times of night change depending on where you are on Earth. They also depend on the season, your latitude (how far north or south you are), your longitude (how far east or west you are), and your time zone.
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Why Night Happens
Night happens because the Earth is always spinning, or rotating. As our planet spins, different parts of it face the Sun. When your part of the Earth is facing the Sun, it's daytime. When your part of the Earth is facing away from the Sun, it's night.
Because the Earth is a sphere and constantly rotating, night occurs at different times in different time zones. For example, when it's night in London, it might be daytime in New York. This is simply because the Sun is shining on different parts of the Earth at any given moment.
Night During an Eclipse
Sometimes, during a solar eclipse, it can feel like it's partially night even in the middle of the day. This happens when the Moon passes directly between the Sun and the Earth. The Moon blocks out the Sun's light, making the sky much darker, almost like dusk or dawn.
Night in Culture
Throughout history, night has often been seen as a time of mystery. In many stories and traditions, night is sometimes linked to things like secrets or even scary events. This idea might come from the natural fear of the dark or simply because it's harder to see things when there's no sunlight.
Related pages
Images for kids
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Night sky over a bog in Estonia, with light pollution visible on the horizon
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The drainage basin of the Nile river and delta at night
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The waning moon
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Regent Street, London, at 10:00 pm
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Nótt, the personification of night in Norse mythology, rides her horse in this 19th-century painting by Peter Nicolai Arbo.
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"Noc na Ukrainie" (Ukraine by Night) – a picture presenting a specific atmosphere of winter nigt in 19th century Ukraine by Józef Chełmoński, 1877 oil on canvas, 69 × 129 cm (National Museum in Warsaw)
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Vincent van Gogh's painting Starry Night (1889)
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See also
In Spanish: Noche para niños
