Jeremy McCreary
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Earth passed through perihelion this morning — January 4, 2025 — at 0528 Pacific Standard Time. It's closest to the sun at this point in its slightly elliptical orbit — about 2% closer than average. This annual solar system event always falls about 14 days after the December solstice.
I'm sure our northern high-latitude members enjoyed the extra warmth.
;^}
The Pagans celebrated the astronomical events they were aware of, and last night, we did the same with some neighbors. It's fun to be aware of events that play out at time and distance scales far larger than those of daily life but still affect us in ways we can actually observe.
So how exactly is perihelion observable? Well, ocean tides at the new and full moons closest to perihelion tend to be the biggest astronomical tides all year, and the observable tides here in SoCal lately have been no exception. We had one such new moon on December 30.
If the moon also happens to be at perigee at these times, you get the biggest astronomical tides of all. Storm surges can complicate these otherwise reliable patterns.
I'm sure our northern high-latitude members enjoyed the extra warmth.
;^}
The Pagans celebrated the astronomical events they were aware of, and last night, we did the same with some neighbors. It's fun to be aware of events that play out at time and distance scales far larger than those of daily life but still affect us in ways we can actually observe.
So how exactly is perihelion observable? Well, ocean tides at the new and full moons closest to perihelion tend to be the biggest astronomical tides all year, and the observable tides here in SoCal lately have been no exception. We had one such new moon on December 30.
If the moon also happens to be at perigee at these times, you get the biggest astronomical tides of all. Storm surges can complicate these otherwise reliable patterns.
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