why is it much colder in the poles if the sun is so far away anyway, shouldn’t it not make any difference?

Question

And i guess the same question for deserts.

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Answer 1

It’s the angle of the sun’s light that makes the difference. The equator is typically warmer because the sun’s light is more direct. When it hits at an angle, it is spread out over a large area.

Imagine that you have one blob of jam to spread over toast. If the sun is directly overhead, as close to the equator, you are spreading over one piece of toast. But at the poles, the area might be the equivalent to four pieces of toast, and you still only have one blob of jam. Each piece of toast will have less jam compared to spreading it over one piece.