The Earth spins from west to east, which is why the Sun appears to rise in the east and set in the west.

Direction of Earth’s spin

  • If you look at Earth from above the North Pole, it rotates counterclockwise on its axis.
  • From the ground, this rotation makes the sky appear to move from east to west, giving us eastward sunrises and westward sunsets.

Extra quick facts

  • Earth completes one full spin in about 24 hours, giving us day and night.
  • The rotation speed at the equator is about 1,670 km/h, slowing to zero at the poles.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.