On Friday (5), the Earth will reach aphelion, the farthest point in its orbit from the Sun. As we know, our planet, like all other planets in the solar system, orbits the star in a motion called translation.
It turns out that this “orbit” that the planets take around the Sun is not a perfect circle, but a slightly elliptical path known as an ellipse. Therefore, the distance between Earth, for example, and our host star varies by about 3% over the course of a year.
According to the astronomical guide InTheSky.orgThe exact moment the Earth will reach aphelion will be at 2:06 a.m. (Brasilia time), when it will be 1.0167 astronomical units (AU) from the Sun – a distance equivalent to 152,093,163 kilometers.
Does the Earth's distance from the sun bring cooler days?
According to the platform, the Earth reaches aphelion every year on roughly the same day. Although this always happens in the Southern Hemisphere in winter, it's not the planet's distance from the Sun that determines the seasons (after all, despite being equally far from the Sun, it's summer in the Northern Hemisphere).
Annual changes in climate are caused entirely by the tilt of the Earth's axis of rotation, and not by any change in its distance from the Sun.
Whether for observers positioned in the Northern Hemisphere, where it is summer, or in the Southern Hemisphere, where it is winter, on days near apogee the Sun appears smaller in the sky than at any other time of the year, and the Earth receives less radiation from it.
In about six months, the opposite will happen: the Earth will be closer to the Sun, which will appear slightly larger in the sky. At this time, too, we will receive more radiation from the star. The exact moment our planet you will hit rock bottom (Its closest point to the Sun) will be on January 4, 2024 at 10:28 AM.
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What would happen if there was no peak?
If the Earth's orbit were a perfect circle, the seasons would be of equal length. Currently, spring and summer are a few days longer than fall and winter in the Northern Hemisphere (and vice versa in the Southern Hemisphere).
However, if the Earth's orbit becomes more eccentric, the consequences will be dire. The seasons in the Southern Hemisphere will become extreme: unbearably hot summers and extremely cold winters, putting humanity's existence at risk.
So be thankful that our planet is (for now) in good shape.
