Axial precession (astronomy)

Axial precession is like a big spinning top. Just like how a top spins and wobbles slightly as it slows down, the Earth does the same thing! But instead of a toy top, the Earth is the thing that's spinning - in a big circle around the sun.

Now, even though the Earth is spinning, it's not just spinning on a straight line. Instead, it's spinning on an angle, kind of like how you might tilt your spinning top to make it wobble. The Earth's angle is called its "axis," and it's what makes the Earth have different seasons.

But here's where it gets really interesting. Just like how a spinning top might start to wobble more and more as it slows down, the Earth's axis also wobbles - but this wobble takes a really, really long time to happen. Scientists have measured that the Earth's axis wobbles around in a full circle every 26,000 years!

This wobble is called "axial precession," and it's why the North Star (the one that always stays in the same place in the sky) won't be the North Star forever. In fact, in about 12,000 years, the North Star will be a different star altogether! All because of axial precession.