What would happen if the Earth axis was not tilted and was instead 0 or 90 degrees?

Question

Can someone please help me with this one I would really appreciate it. Basically describe to me as simple as you possibly could what would happen if the Earth's axis was not tilted and was instead rotating at 0 degrees and at 90 degrees. What is the big difference between the two degrees? What is the big deal? How would both scenarios affect the seasons?

Thanks a ton.

Answer 1

The tides would be different if the moon did not change the with the axis change the.

The Global forests/ prevailing winds, ocean current would all change because the amount of of sunlight.

To 0 degrees there would be  a change that would not be small in any regards except compare with 90 degrees  

Answer 2

Same seasons all year long.

Answer 3

At 0 degrees, it might be true that we would not experience seasons in the form we're all used to, but the Earth would still have an elliptical orbit around the Sun, bringing our planet closer to it during the winter months and farther away during the summer months.  Without a mediating effect from a tilted planet, we might expect some sort of seasonal effect on both hemispheres simultaneously.  However, I'm not quite sure how much variation in distance from the Sun is necessary to produce what we call 'seasons'.

Let's now imagine a planet like Uranus, which has a nearly horizontal tilt, and apply those conditions to the Earth.  If that were the case (90 degree tilt with respect to the north/south axis), one would see a planet with sunlight exposure on one side for nearly six months, leaving the other side in darkness during that time, and vice versa for the remaining six months of the year.  The temperature gradients between the cold and sun heated sides during the year would generate winds clocked at unimaginable speeds; these winds serving to distribute heat and cold equally around the planet.  Imagine a biosphere trying to cope with six months of extreme cold transitioning into six months of sun bathing.

Would the moon remain in the same orbit or would it too have an orbital plane at 0 or 90 degrees? Leaving the moon in its current orbit while changing the Earth to 0 or 90 would have some adverse effects on the stability of our rotation (not to be confused with revolution around the sun), as the moon is believed to have stabilized a chaotic rotation we once had in the distant past.

You could go on and on (as I've done here), but another question would be to ask how Earth got to those angles? Gigantic cosmic collisions? Your answer might affect how our planet's magnetic field is positioned within the Earth since Uranus' magnetic field doesn't even lie in the absolute center of the planet, leaving astronomers and astrophysicists scratching their heads.  A shifted magnetic field location would no doubt be apparent.  Way too much writing, lo siento.

Answer 4

If the Earth were rotating at exactly 0 or 90 degrees, there would be no seasons, since it's the tilt that causes them in the first place.  It would be much like the climate is at the equator--not hot necessarily, but just never really varying much over the course of the year.

Answer 5

The simple answer...

We would have an entirely different plant, assuming we could even live on it.

Oceans and land masses would be completely different and in different perorations.

Global climate would be un-recognizable. Tides would likely not exist depending on if there was a moon and where it was located.  

Everything about our planet Earth is unique in its design as though a creator made it just like this, just for us. But I personally do not subscribe to the God created Earth in 7 days Fairy tale. Even if you assume one day on Gods life is millions of years.

Having said that, I do think there is a specific design to this planet as it is.