Mumbai: Today, Thursday July 6, is Aphelion Day - the day when the planet Earth is at its farthest from the Sun.
The Earth orbits the Sun in elliptical manner with the Sun situated at one of the two foci of the ellipse. This means there is a time every year when the Earth comes very close to the Sun – called Perihelion, and then goes to the farthest distance away from it – called Aphelion.
Earth is farthest from the Sun every year in early July, about two weeks after the June solstice.
Also, the planet Earth is closest to the Sun every year in early January, about two weeks after the December solstice.
A solstice is a moment, when the Sun is farthest north in the sky.
Accordingly, the Earth reaches its most distant point from the Sun for 2023 today i.e. July 6, 2023. Astronomers call this yearly point in Earth’s orbit our aphelion.
During aphelion, Earth will be located nearly 152.1 million kilometres (94.5 million miles) away from the Sun. This distance between Earth and the Sun is scientifically referred to in terms of an Astronomical Unit (AU). 1 AU is equivalent to 149.6 million kilometres (93 million miles).
In its orbit, while Earth reaches its farthest point, it also has its nearest point to the Sun, known as perihelion, when it is just 147.1 million kilometres (91.4 million miles) away.
The Earth will be at its farthest distance today. But we are still feeling abnormally hot, with Monday July 03 being the hottest day ever.
It is because the rise in temperatures on the planet Earth is not directly related to its distance from the Sun.
According to researcher, the primary driver of Earth's seasons is not the distance from the Sun but rather the tilt of Earth's axis.
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