| Event | Date (Approx.) | Distance from Sun | Hemisphere Experiencing Summer | Apparent Sun Size | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | Perihelion | January 3–5 | 91.4 million miles (Closest) | Southern Hemisphere | Largest (3.3% bigger) | | Aphelion | July 4–6 | 94.5 million miles (Farthest) | Northern Hemisphere | Smallest |
Let’s clear up a few persistent myths.
The next time someone shivers on a cold January day and asks, “Why is it so cold if we’re closer to the Sun?” you’ll have the answer. Earth’s distance from the Sun changes throughout the year, but it’s our planet’s tilt—not its orbit—that dictates when you’ll need a coat or swimsuit.
So yes, Earth is closest to the Sun in January. It’s a wonderful reminder that in astronomy, common sense often needs a cosmic reality check.
Earth doesn’t orbit the sun in a perfect circle. Its path is a slight ellipse (an oval). That means there is one point where our planet is closest to the sun and one point where it is farthest away.
In 2024, for example, Earth reached perihelion on January 2nd. At that moment, we were about 91.4 million miles (147.1 million km) from the sun. Compare that to aphelion in July, when we drift out to about 94.5 million miles (152.1 million km) away.
At perihelion, Earth is approximately 91.4 million miles (147.1 million kilometers) from the Sun. To put that in perspective, the farthest point in our orbit—called aphelion, which occurs in early July—is about 94.5 million miles (152.1 million kilometers) away.
That’s a difference of roughly 3 million miles (3.3%). While that sounds like a lot in human terms, it’s a relatively small change in astronomical terms. But it has real effects.
Earth spins on an axis that is tilted 23.5 degrees relative to its orbital plane around the sun. This tilt is the sole driver of our seasons.
Think of it this way: Place your hands a few inches from a campfire. If you tilt your palms away, they feel cool. If you tilt them directly toward the fire, they feel hot. The distance change (3 inches) matters less than the angle of your hands.
If you photograph the sun at the same time every day for a year and overlay the images, you’ll see a figure-eight pattern called an analemma. The “lopsided” shape of this figure-eight is caused by two factors: Earth’s axial tilt and the fact that we are moving faster at perihelion (January) and slower at aphelion (July). This affects the time of solar noon throughout the year.
