APOD: 2025 January 4 - Welcome to Perihelion

Good morning, Rallypoint, and welcome to the Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) for January 4th, 2025.

This image of the Sun was taken on December 21st. Earth reaches its orbital perihelion (closest point to the Sun) today...but if you live in the Northern Hemisphere, it may not feel like it. However, those in the Southern Hemisphere are enjoying their first weeks of Summer. Things are even warmer for the Parker Solar Probe.

Launched in 2018, the Parker Solar Probe passed within 3.8 million miles of the Sun on December 24th, 2024. NASA detected the first beacon signals from Parker on December 26th, and had moved far enough away from the Sun by January 1st for a full telemetry signal to be received. We should hear more about the Parker Solar Probe in the coming days.