<P> These effects are caused by a combination of the Earth's axial tilt and its revolution around the sun . The direction of the Earth's axial tilt, as well as its angle relative to the plane of the Earth's orbit around the sun, remains very nearly constant over the course of a year (both change very slowly over long time periods). At northern midsummer the North Pole is facing towards the sun to its maximum extent . As the year progresses and the Earth moves around the sun, the North Pole gradually turns away from the sun until at midwinter it is facing away from the Sun to its maximum extent . A similar sequence is observed at the South Pole, with a six - month time difference . </P> <P> In most places on Earth, local time is determined by longitude, such that the time of day is more - or-less synchronised to the position of the sun in the sky (for example, at midday the sun is roughly at its highest). This line of reasoning fails at the North Pole, where the sun rises and sets only once per year, and all lines of longitude, and hence all time zones, converge . There is no permanent human presence at the North Pole and no particular time zone has been assigned . Polar expeditions may use any time zone that is convenient, such as Greenwich Mean Time, or the time zone of the country from which they departed . </P> <P> The North Pole is substantially warmer than the South Pole because it lies at sea level in the middle of an ocean (which acts as a reservoir of heat), rather than at altitude on a continental land mass . Despite being an ice cap, it shares some characteristics with a tundra climate (ETf) due to the July and August temperatures peaking just above freezing . </P> <P> Winter temperatures at the North Pole can range from about − 50 to − 13 ° C (− 58 to 9 ° F), averaging around − 31 ° C (− 24 ° F). However, a freak storm caused the temperature to reach 0.7 ° C (33 ° F) for a time at a World Meteorological Organization buoy, located at 87.45 ° N, on December 30, 2015 . It was estimated that the temperature at the North Pole was between 30 and 35 ° F (− 1 and 2 ° C) during the storm . Summer temperatures (June, July, and August) average around the freezing point (0 ° C (32 ° F)). The highest temperature yet recorded is 13 ° C (55 ° F), much warmer than the South Pole's record high of only − 12.3 ° C (9.9 ° F). A similar spike in temperatures would occur on November 15, 2016, and would last for several days . </P>

Latitude and longitude coordinates of the north pole