Perihelion: Today Earth Comes Closest To Sun And Sunlight At Its Most Intensity (Photo on X NWS Northern Indiana @NWSIWX)

Today is a special day on Earth as it marks a time when our planet becomes nearest to the sun on 2024, January 3rd. Earth today reaches nearly 3 million miles nearer to the sun compared to other times when the Earth will be farther away from it. The day is called Perihelion when the earth comes closer to the sun. When the Earth goes farthest from the earth, then the day is called aphelion.

As happened on January 3rd (today), one cannot expect Perihelion to happen every year. However, the day happens two weeks after the winter solstice, marking the shortest day in the Northern Hemisphere.

Interestingly, the special event every year shows that the Earth does not travel in a perfect circle in its orbit around the sun instead, it follows a dynamic journey more like an oval.

The sunlight will be 7% more intense during perihelion as the earth comes closest to the sun, according to a study by the University of California. Earth is 91.4 million miles away from the sun today, making it the nearest time in a year.

Every year, the perihelion day happens around January 2 to 4. However, the increased solar radiation due to the 7 % more intensity of the light might affect weather patterns and hence cause subtle climate changes. But the changes might not be that much noticeable to the people as the one silent part of the natural mechanism.