Nancy Higgins, age 12, of Florence, S.C., for her question:

DOES THE EARTH ROTATE IN A SPECIAL DIRECTION?

Our big round planet spins around in an easterly direction, and it also bowls around its orbit in an easterly direction. In fact, this is the most stylish direction in the solar system. Most of the planets rotate toward the east, and all of them orbit eastward around their orbits. Even the starry sun rotates in an easterly direction.

As the earth rotates toward the east, it turns us around to face first one view and then another view of outer space. This is why the heavenly bodies rise above the eastern horizon and set in the west. As we whirl around toward the east, they appear to travel up and over the sky in a westward direction.