In the middle of winter. Distance doesn't make the seasons – something else does.
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Your guess
When is Earth closest to the Sun?
Not quite.
In early January, around 3 January. It is farthest away in early July. In the north it is still cold in January.
It's the tilt
23.4degreesis Earth's axial tilt
The tilted axis points the same way all year. In June the northern hemisphere leans toward the Sun and the light hits more directly: summer. In December and January it's the southern hemisphere's turn – summer there, winter in the north.
A wandering date
The day of closest approach drifts very slowly through the calendar. Around the year 1600 it fell at the end of December. Around the year 2500 it will fall on 10 to 13 January.
Fits with this
Nº 003 · Space · 50 sec
How old is the sunlight on your skin?
Eight minutes – and many thousands of years.
Nº 001 · Space · 1 min
Why do we always see the same side of the Moon?
It does spin – exactly once per trip around Earth.
