On January 2, 2021, the Earth is closer to sun on its elliptical orbit than on any other day of the year, marking an annual event known as perihelion.
The word perihelion is translated from ancient Greek, which means “by the sun.” According to EarthSky, the Earth was expected to reach perihelion on Saturday morning at 8:51 a.m. ET.
Sun. it is about 3% higher in the sky on Saturday – not enough to be visible to the naked eye. Remember: You should never look at the sun without adequate eye protection, and sunglasses are not a sufficient replacement for sunglasses.
The Earth’s orbit is not a perfect circle, which means that sometimes the planet is a little closer to our star, and sometimes it is further away. The distance varies by about 3 million miles during the year – almost 13 times the distance from Earth to the Moon.
Perihelion also marks the time when the Earth moves fastest in its orbit around the sun. Currently, the planet runs around the Sun at almost 19 miles per second – about 0.6 miles per second farther than when it reaches its farthest point from the sun in July.
“If you run east at midnight locally, you’ll move as fast as you can (at least in Sun-centered coordinates) to your location,” NASA said.
Because of this, summer in the northern hemisphere lasts about five days longer than winter, according to EarthSky. The opposite is true in the southern hemisphere.
Although the sunlight is more intense on Saturday, the winter in the northern hemisphere is not affected, due to the 23.5 degree inclination of the Earth’s axis. Being closer to the sun does not change the inclination of the Earth, so the North Pole is still tilted away from the sun.
In six months, on July 5, the Earth will be farthest from the sun, known as the aphelion, meaning “away from the sun.” At perihelion, the Earth is about 91.5 million miles from the sun, and at aphelion, it is about 94.5 million miles away.
Between perihelion and aphelion, there is a difference of about 6.7% in the intensity of sunlight as it hits our planet. According to NASA, this is an explanation for more extreme seasons in the southern hemisphere compared to the northern hemisphere.
The perihelion is not the only heavenly event this weekend. Saturday night to Sunday morning also marks the peak Rain of quadrantid meteorites – one of the best of the year.