To The Sun !!install!! — What Season Is Earth Closest

"You can," Maya laughed. "Just make sure you tell them it doesn't help much if you're leaning backward."

Leo looked back at the sun, then back at the phone screen. "So... right now, we are actually three million miles further away from the sun than we were during that blizzard last Christmas?"

“That’s pretty cool,” Leo said, pulling his jacket tighter. “And a little weird.” what season is earth closest to the sun

“Exactly,” Mom said. “The tilt is the real star of the show. In fact, Earth’s orbit is almost a circle. The difference in distance is only about 3 million miles — tiny compared to 93 million miles total. That small change can’t beat the tilt’s effect.”

The reason we don't roast in January or freeze in July has nothing to do with distance. Instead, our seasons are dictated by the of Earth's axis. During the Northern Hemisphere's winter, we are tilted away from the sun, leading to shorter days and less direct sunlight, even though we are physically closer to the heat source. "You can," Maya laughed

“The universe is full of weird and wonderful surprises,” Mom said, smiling.

“Earth is tilted,” she explained. “In December and January, the Northern Hemisphere — where we live — is tilted away from the sun. So even though we’re a bit closer to the sun overall, the sunlight hits us at a low angle, spreading out and giving us less heat. That’s winter.” right now, we are actually three million miles

It’s a common misconception that we get closer to the sun in the summer, but for those in the Northern Hemisphere, the opposite is actually true.

It was a blistering afternoon in the middle of July. Twelve-year-old Leo was sprawled out on the front porch, a melting popsicle dripping onto his hand. He squinted up at the sky, shielding his eyes from the blinding white orb hanging there.

She then tilted the top of the ball away from the sun. "In January, even though we’re physically closer to the sun in space, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted away from it. The light hits us at a shallow angle, spreading out the heat, and the days are short. That's why we have winter."

"Bingo," Maya said. "The Earth’s orbit isn't a perfect circle; it’s an ellipse, kind of like a slightly squashed circle. Every year, around January 3rd, we hit 'perihelion'—our closest approach. We’re about three million miles closer to the sun in winter than we are in summer."