Debunked Myths

It seems logical that we'd be warmer when closer to the Sun, but Earth's slightly elliptical orbit creates only minor distance variations. In a counterintuitive twist, Earth is actually closest to the Sun in early January—during Northern Hemisphere winter—and farthest in July during summer. The distance difference is too small to cause seasonal changes.

The real cause is Earth's 23.5-degree axial tilt. As we orbit the Sun, this tilt causes hemispheres to lean toward or away from our star. When your hemisphere tilts toward the Sun, you experience summer with more direct sunlight and longer days. When tilted away, you get winter with indirect light and shorter days.

This explains why seasons are opposite in Northern and Southern Hemispheres—when it's summer in New York, it's winter in Sydney. The tilted planet model provides an elegant explanation for the annual cycle that shapes life on Earth, proving that sometimes the truth is more fascinating than our initial assumptions.