Perihelion Day

Perihelion Day occurs about two weeks after every December Solstice

On this day, the earth is closer to the sun than any other day. Because the earth orbits the sun in an elliptical path, the sun gets closer when the earth passes nearest to it in its path. This is the day when the sun will appear the largest in the sky. 

The terms perihelion and aphelion describe different points in the Earth’s orbit of the Sun. Aphelion is the point of the Earth's orbit that is farthest away from the sun and occurs in July within 2 weeks of the Summer Solstice. Perihelion is the point of the Earth's orbit that is nearest to the sun and occurs approximately 2 weeks after the Winter Solstice. 

The words come from Ancient Greek, in which helios means “Sun,” apo means “far,” and peri means “close.” Interestingly, the proximity of the sun does not affect the temperature directly on earth. Afterall, the sun is closest when half of the earth (northern hemisphere) is in the winter season!

The dates of the Perihelion have changed over the years and can vary from year to year.