The solar disk will look bigger today

The apparent diameter of the Sun will appear today three percent larger than in July, with the Earth at its closest point to the star, the Moscow Planetarium reported.

Visually, this difference will be imperceptible, as the change in disk size occurs smoothly within six months, the astronomers said.

This Wednesday the distance between the Sun and our planet will be minimal in a year and will be 147 million 98 thousand 925 kilometers, said the Russian scientific entity.

The Earth circles the Sun in 365 days six hours, nine minutes and 10 seconds, and moves around the Sun in an elliptical orbit at an average speed of 29,765 kilometers per second.

Today, January 4, 2023, the Earth will be in perihelion at 22:17, Moscow time, while in early July it will pass through the farthest point (aphelion) of its orbit around the Sun.

At that time the distance between the two celestial bodies will be slightly greater than 152 million kilometers. (Text and photo: PL)