Happy Perihelion! The Earth is now at its closest approach to the Sun. Aphelion (the furthest distance from the Sun) will be on 4 July this year (Mountain Time).
https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/perihelion-aphelion-solstice.html
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@Robminchin My quick google search says that there is a 5 x 10^6 km difference between Aphelion and Perihelion. Is this enough to make a noticeable weather difference near the equator where axial tilt is not such a big factor?
Also is there some force that keeps the line of apsides close to the solstices or is it just our luck to be alive at a time when they coincide?
@antares it’s about a3% difference in distance, so a ~7% difference in brightness. I doubt that’s going to make a big difference.
It’s just luck that the line of apsides is close to the solstices – at some point in the distant future (about 4 millennia) it will line up with the equinoxes.