Earth to reach its farthest point from the Sun on July 6, yet the summer heat will not cool: Here's why
Why Earth reaching its farthest point from the Sun won't cool the summer heat Isn't it amazing what Earth is doing right now? What is
Why Earth reaching its farthest point from the Sun won't cool the summer heat Isn't it amazing what Earth is doing right now? What is aphelion? Does Earth's distance from the Sun matter at all? Why does the Southern Hemisphere have winter in July? Earth even slows down during aphelion Why doesn't aphelion fall on exactly the same date every year? A perfectly balanced system, now facing a new challenge Earth will reach its farthest point from the Sun on July 6, a yearly astronomical event known as aphelion. At around 152.1 million kilometres from the Sun, the planet will be about 5 million kilometres farther away than it is in early January. Yet, despite this greater distance, the Northern Hemisphere will remain firmly in the grip of summer, with no drop in temperatures. The timing surprises many people because it seems to defy common sense. If Earth is farther from the Sun, shouldn't it be cooler? Scientists say the answer is no. The seasons are shaped not by how far Earth is from the Sun, but by the way our planet is tilted as it journeys through space.At first glance, it seems obvious that being farther from the Sun should make Earth cooler. After all, moving away from a campfire makes you feel less warm.But space does not work quite like that.Imagine shining a torch onto a wall. Hold it straight and the light forms a small, bright circle. Tilt the torch and the same light spreads over a much larger area, making it less intense. The Sun behaves in a similar way.During July, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted about 23.5 degrees towards the Sun.
Because of this tilt, sunlight strikes the ground more directly and daylight lasts much longer than it does in winter.Those two factors deliver far more energy to the surface than the small reduction caused by Earth's greater distance from the Sun.That is why cities across Europe, North America and much of Asia continue to experience warm summer days even when Earth is at its most distant point from the Sun.Pause for a moment and think about where you are.You are standing, sitting or walking on a planet that is rotating at up to about 1,670 kilometres per hour at the equator while simultaneously orbiting the Sun at an average speed of around 107,000 kilometres per hour.You cannot feel either movement.At this very moment, someone could be relaxing beside a public swimming pool in Spain, Greece or Italy, soaking up the summer sunshine. Thousands of kilometres away, someone in Australia, New Zealand or Argentina may be pulling on a winter jacket before heading to work.They are all travelling through space together on the same planet, moving at incredible speeds, yet experiencing completely opposite seasons simply because Earth is tilted.It is one of the most elegant examples of how precisely our Solar System works.Aphelion is the point in Earth's orbit where it is farthest from the Sun. This year, it occurs on July 6, when Earth will be about 152.1 million kilometres (94.5 million miles) away.The opposite point is called perihelion, which occurs in early January when Earth is about 147.1 million kilometres (91.4 million miles) from the Sun.Although that sounds like a huge difference, it amounts to only about 3.3 per cent of Earth's average distance from the Sun because our planet follows an orbit that is almost circular, not highly elongated.Yes, but far less than most people imagine.At aphelion, Earth receives about 7 per cent less solar energy than it does at perihelion because sunlight spreads over a slightly larger area.
The BriefWire