July Meteor Showers + More Astronomical Events Monday, July 16,
2012 While it may appear counter-intuitive to northern
hemisphere residents, the Earth was at aphelion (farthest from
the Sun) on July 4 at about 94,510,232 miles. It just so happens
that the tilt of the Earth’s polar axis has the northern
hemisphere tipped toward the Sun at that time, providing more
direct sunlight for us. At perihelion (Earth closest to the Sun)
back on January 4, the Earth-Sun distance was 91,406,283 miles.
The difference, just over three million miles (or 7 percent),
has little effect on our planet. However, northern hemisphere
summer is warmer than its southern hemisphere counterpart
because there is much more land mass north of the Earth’s
equator to absorb the solar radiation. Planets to look for High
in the southwestern sky after sunset you can still see Mars and
Saturn. At the beginning of the month they were about 23.5
degrees apart. By month’s end they will have narrowed that
distance to only eight degrees. If you have