The Earth is at Perihelion Today

The Earth is at perihelion today. This is when the Earth is at its closest distance from the Sun. Like all planets, Earth’s orbit is not a perfect circle instead it’s elliptical or more like an oval and reaches perihelion twice in a calendar year. Today, this occurs at 7:20 p.m. Hawaiʻi Standard Time. On this day, Earth is only 91.4 million miles from the Sun, compared to an average distance of about 93 million miles. Some people think how close we are to the Sun has an impact on the change of seasons… but what really matters is actually the tilt of the Earth. Each January, we are closer to the Sun than at any other time of the year, but the Northern Hemisphere is tilted away from the Sun, and so we experience winter. In the southern hemisphere, they are experiencing summer. Hope you enjoyed this quick astronomy highlight – keep it tuned to Maui Now for everything Maui, always now.