Why is the Earth hotter in July and cooler in January?

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SUMMARY

The Earth experiences higher temperatures in July and cooler temperatures in January due to its axial tilt rather than its distance from the Sun. The elliptical nature of Earth's orbit contributes minimally to seasonal temperature variations, with the axial tilt being the primary driver of seasonal changes. The discussion highlights that while the Earth is closest to the Sun (perihelion) in early January, the angle of sunlight and the distribution of land and water between hemispheres play a more significant role in temperature differences. This phenomenon is particularly pronounced in the Northern Hemisphere, where January is cooler and July is hotter.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Earth's axial tilt and its impact on seasons
  • Basic knowledge of Earth's orbital mechanics
  • Familiarity with the concepts of perihelion and aphelion
  • Awareness of geographical differences in climate between hemispheres
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the effects of Earth's axial tilt on seasonal climate variations
  • Explore the concept of perihelion and aphelion in more detail
  • Investigate how land-water distribution affects regional climates
  • Learn about the differences in seasonal experiences between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres
USEFUL FOR

Students of Earth sciences, climatologists, and anyone interested in understanding seasonal climate variations and their underlying causes.

bolbol2054
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We know that the Earth revolves around the sun in an oval orbit the sun occupies one of its centers
On this basis, the distance from the sun is not constant and the land closest to the sun in Maicon on Jan. 3 and and be further from the sun on July 4, the difference between the two points approximately 5 million km
If speculate that the factors that govern the temperature of the Earth's surface is
1 - The amount of distance from the Sun{ it is well known that the planets furthest from the sun is in the cooler temperatures}
2 - angle of the sun's rays fall on the ground

What are the physical laws that govern this issue and make it as unexpected to mind is that jan more cooler and july more hotter
 
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Simply put, the "ovalness" (ellipticity, really) of Earth's orbit is rather small, while Earth's axial tilt is rather large. Hence, the seasons are primarily driven by effect 2, and effect 1 is only one among several small secondary considerations. http://cseligman.com/text/planets/orbiteffect.htm" is one of the few I could find that attempts to roughly quantify the respective contributions.
 
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onomatomanic said:
Simply put, the "ovalness" (ellipticity, really) of Earth's orbit is rather small, while Earth's axial tilt is rather large. Hence, the seasons are primarily driven by effect 2, and effect 1 is only one among several small secondary considerations. http://cseligman.com/text/planets/orbiteffect.htm" is one of the few I could find that attempts to roughly quantify the respective contributions.

thank you sir very much i have really benfited of your guiding informations
 
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BTW, note that January being cooler and July being hotter is entirely northern-hemispherocentric.

If you live south of the equator, you'll be wearing shorts at New Years and a parka on Firecracker Day.
 


DaveC426913 said:
...Firecracker Day.
I've never heard of that - is that an Australian holiday? :-p

And btw, the difference is less than 5 million miles. Aphelion is 94.5 and perihelion is 91.4 million miles.
 


russ_watters said:
I've never heard of that - is that an Australian holiday? :-p

Ha ha no. Just that, up here in the GWN, July 4 doesn't pull the heartstrings the way it does for y'all.
 


thank you mr dave and mr russ
i have understood from the link that the water-land distriputions between north and south Earth hemispheres make the Earth as awhole cooler in jan and hotter in jul
 

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