What is the point of the planet closest to the sun?

Point of Planet Closest to the Sun

If the planet you are referring to is the Earth, the term you are looking for is "perihelion." This phenomenon occurs in early January each year.

Answer

It is possible that the questioner was actually asking about "perihelion", but if that is the case, the question is not well formed. Perihelion is not a point on the earth; it is a point in the earth's orbit around the sun. It is the point of the earth's orbit which is closest to the sun, and the point on the earth's surface that happens to be closest to the sun at the moment of perihelion is variable. At the other 'end' of our eliptical orbit is "aphelion", the point in our orbit when earth is farthest from the sun. This happens during summer in the northern hemisphere.

If the questioner's question is taken exactly as it is, then the answer would be "wherever on the planet the sun happens to be directly overhead at any given moment. There is always a point on earth at which the sun is directly overhead. This point is moving moment by moment, and it's moving at quite a clip-- close to a thousand miles per hour, depending on exactly where it is within the tropics. The point of the planet that is closest to the sun is always within the tropics (Capricorn and Cancer).

First answer by Joepoidog. Last edit by Emdrgreg. Contributor trust: 1013 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 74 [recommend question]