How much closer is the sun to earth because of it tilt in summer rather than winter?

Answer 1

The earth is at perihelion (its closest approach to the sun) in early January, a few days after the northern hemisphere's winter solstice. This is summer in the Southern Hemisphere. Aphelion, when earth is farthest from the sun, happens in early July, a few days after the summer solstice in the north. This is winter in the southern hemisphere. We in the north can have a little trouble initially wrapping our brains around this, because it is natural for anyone to think that summer occurs when we are closest to the sun. This is true for our friends in the south, not for us. The seasons have much more to do with the tilt in the earth's axis than with proximity to the sun. That's why we northerners can experience winter at the time that the earth is actually closer to the sun.

Answer 2

The closest point to the Sun in a planet's orbit is called perihelion. The furthest point is called aphelion.

For the earth perihelion occurs in early January.

Answer 3

The solar elevation will be highest at Local Apparent Noon, the time at which the Sun passes the longitude of the observer. This is generally within a half-hour of noon on the clock, except during Daylight savings time or summer time, during which LAN is generally between a half-hour to 90 minutes after noon on the clock.

Answer 4

When the Sun is high in the sky, for example at noon, each ray of sunlight soaks into a relatively small area of ground, keeping the temperature high.

When the Sun is low in the sky, the Sun's light hits the Earth at an oblique

angle, so each ray of sunlight soaks into more area of ground, which heats the ground less, resulting in cooler temperatures.

Answer 5

it is closer to the sun in the winter and farthest in the summer.

Slight revision. This is somewhat true, but not enough to make a difference. If we are talking in terms of Summer and Winter differences, then it's the tilt of the Earth in which during part of the orbit causes one hemisphere to be in more direct sunlight than the other.

If we're talking over the course of history then we can prove two things, we get further from the sun, by about 1.5 cm a year total and the sun, through nuclear fusion is eating it's own mass as fuel, which accounts for some of the total distance increase. So therefore we are constantly growing further away from the sun.

Answer 6

During the summer, Earth is tilted towards the sun, so, in the Northern Hemisphere, the angle* of insolation* is greater, which is why it is hot. During winter, the Earth is tilted away from the sun, so, in the Norhter Hemisphere, the angle of insolation is less, which is why it is cold.

The greater the angle of insolation, the insolation Earth receives is more direct, so Earth's surface becomes hotter than if the angle of insolation were less.

*The angle of insolation is how high over the horizon the sun is.

*Insolation is sunlight.

Answer 7

Planet earth is closest to the sun (perihelion) in early January, and it is farthest from the sun (aphelion) in early July. A lot of people (northerners, mostly) are surprised by this. Perihelion-aphelion do not correspond exactly with the solstices, which is also a little shocking for some.

Answer 8

The Earth and the sun never move closer or farther apart. But the side of Earth tilted toward the sun is having summer, while the part tilted away from the sun is having winter. This allows more of the suns rays to be concentrated on a certain part of the Earth, and is more intense on that the side than the opposite side.

Answer 9

Every orbit is elliptical, and every ellipse has points opposite each other that are closest and farthest from the ellipse's foci.

The point where an object in solar orbit is closest to the sun is called its perihelion, and the point at the opposite side of the orbit where it's farthest from the sun is called its aphelion. When Earth is at its perihelion, it is 91.4 million miles (147 million kilometers) from the sun, and at its aphelion it is 94.5 million miles (152 million kilometers) away. Earth is 3.4% farther from the sun at its aphelion than it is at its perihelion.

The variation in the sun-Earth distance has virtually no effect on Earth's climate compared to the effect of the tilt of Earth's rotational axis with respect to the sun.

Earth is at its perihelion in early January and at its aphelion in early July. That means that when a majority of Earth's population is experiencing the coldest part of the year, Earth is closest to the sun. In 2013 and 2014 the dates and times are...

• perihelion on January 2, 2013 at 4:38 AM UTC
• aphelion on July 5, 2013 at 2:44 PM UTC
• perihelion on January 4, 2014 at 11:59 AM UTC
• aphelion on July 4, 2014 at 12:13 AM UTC

The closer an object is to the sun, the faster it travels along its orbit and the less time it takes to complete its orbit. That is why the average time from the December solstice to the March equinox is 88.98 days while the average time from the June solstice to the September equinox is 93.66 days.

Answer 10

The Earth revolves around the sun once every year, and the rovolution is not a perfect circle so the distance changes slightly through out the years.