At the equator, Earth spins at about 1,070 miles per hour.
As you move north or south from there, the speed slows. Exactly at the poles—Earth’s axis points—the spin is much slower. Picture a record spinning.
If you placed a toy at the center, then moved it an inch away from the center, then two inches, etc., the toy would have to travel farther and farther to make one full rotation. Each revolution on Earth, no matter how slow the turn, is equal to one day.
Earth also moves in an orbit. One rotation around the sun, at about 67,000 miles per hour, equals one year on Earth.
But wait, there’s more. Our solar system is spinning around the Milky Way at about 558,000 miles per hour, and the Milky Way is spinning with other clusters of neighboring galaxies at the rate of 666,000 mph. Hold on tight!
