Why is the tilt of the Earth's axis 23 1/2 degrees?

We don't know. It seems that soon after it was formed, it got hit by a large body that tilted it that direction. Perhaps the one that formed our Moon. Other planets have even stranger inclinations. We do not know what a 'normal' inclination is with so few bodies to examine.


Copyright 1997 Dr. Sten Odenwald
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