Stars, the sun, and, if they change, seasons. The moon is a nice guide from month to month but it’s not really used to keep track of time over a year. Usually there’s 12 full moons, but sometimes it’s 13. The stars have long been used as a time-keeping constant and the path of the sun too. With the Earth’s axial tilt, everywhere on the planet sees variation in where the sun rises, peaks, and sets - even at the equator. The visible constellations vary through the year and are what we still use to measure Earth’s position (and therefore the date).
The date is a position in orbit. The time is a direction you face. Our measure of time isn’t arbitrary
Stars, the sun, and, if they change, seasons. The moon is a nice guide from month to month but it’s not really used to keep track of time over a year. Usually there’s 12 full moons, but sometimes it’s 13. The stars have long been used as a time-keeping constant and the path of the sun too. With the Earth’s axial tilt, everywhere on the planet sees variation in where the sun rises, peaks, and sets - even at the equator. The visible constellations vary through the year and are what we still use to measure Earth’s position (and therefore the date).
The date is a position in orbit. The time is a direction you face. Our measure of time isn’t arbitrary