What is Earth’s orbit?

Earth’s orbit is like Earth taking a long, smooth ride around the Sun.

Imagine you're on a swing at the park. You pump your legs to go higher and higher, but instead of stopping, you just keep going in a circle. That's kind of what Earth does, except it's not a swing, it's a giant ball, and the Sun is like the person pushing you.

Earth’s orbit is the path Earth follows as it goes around the Sun. It takes about 365 days to complete one full trip, that’s why we have years!

Think of the Sun as the center of a giant merry-go-round. Earth is one of the horses on that ride, and instead of being pulled by a horse, it's kept moving by gravity, the same thing that keeps you on the ground when you jump.

Earth doesn’t go in a perfect circle; its path is more like an oval. Sometimes we're a little closer to the Sun, sometimes a bit farther away, but we always come back around again!