Earth To Reach Closest Point To The Sun For The Year

By Carrie Jung
Published: Saturday, January 3, 2015 - 5:05am

The earth will reach the closest point to the sun for the year Saturday night.

At 11:30 p.m. local time, the planet will be approximately 91.4 million miles from the sun. That’s about 3 million miles closer than it will be in July, when the earth’s nearly circular orbit is farthest away.

Jeffrey Hall, the director of the Lowell Observatory near Flagstaff, said while the event known as the Perihelion doesn’t have a noticeable impact on temperatures it does cause a slight increase in solar radiation levels.  

"Due to the fact that the earth is just closer to the sun but its not the dominant effect," Hall said. "The seasonal changes caused by the tilt of the earth’s access are much more important."

Hall said due to the proximity, the earth will also be traveling faster through space. But, he added, for the most part the effects are unnoticeable.

Science