During summer in the Northern Hemisphere, the North Pole is illuminated by the Sun 24 hours per day. During this time, the temperature often does not rise above the freezing point of water. Explain why.

The temperature does not rise most of the time above the freezing point because the sunlight is coming at a very low angle.

Explanation:

The North Pole is one of the two places on Earth, along with the South Pole, where it has sunlight for 24 hours when it is summer. The reason why this happens is the inclination of Earth, so in one part of the year, the poles are getting exposed to sunlight all the time, while in the other part of the year they get no sunlight.

When it is summer on the North Pole, for the majority of the time, the temperature is below the freezing point of water. This may seem strange but it is not really. Despite get sunlight for several months for 24 hours each day, the sunlight comes at such a low angle that the heat is dispersed over a much larger area than at other places on Earth, thus the heat that the North Pole gets is minimal and not sufficient to really warm it up.