Latest news with #seasons
BBC News
4 days ago
- Climate
- BBC News
Gloucestershire in pictures: Hazy days and Farmwatch
We've certainly experienced all the seasons this week - as can be seen in another week of glorious photos in Gloucestershire. We couldn't be luckier where we live - with our beautiful sunrises and green views for miles. On Thursday, we were hearing from farmers about the passion they have for their work as well as the struggles they face in BBC Farmwatch. Football kit blessings: Gloucester City AFC have had their new kit blessed at Gloucester Cathedral. The club was granted access to the building where Gloucester Cathedral Chaplain Tony Hughes gave the shirt an official blessing in the world famous cloisters. Beautiful sunshine: Kicking things off this week is this gorgeous photo in Huntley. The sun and the colours are striking. It's thanks to our weather watchers that we get to see the beautiful corners of Gloucestershire. So, thank you Lucky Lily for this one. Festival time: Cricket fans have once again been treated to action in Cheltenham this week as Gloucestershire took on Derbyshire. Halo in the sky: An unusual and striking sight, thank you to Ursula for sending this one through to us. This is known to be a "sun halo" and is an atmospheric optical phenomenon that appears as a ring of light surrounding the sun or one was captured in Cheltenham this week. Warm work: Cheltenham Town got their League Two campaign under way with a 1-0 defeat to Cambridge United. Farmwatch: Shining a light on the farming industry was a whole day of live broadcasting from farming environments in Gloucestershire. On Thursday, BBC Gloucestershire heard from farmers about their passion and struggles when it comes to the industry, as part of BBC heard first-hand accounts from those in the thick of it throughout the whole day. Stunning blue: Loving this view in Haresfield from our weather watcher, Space Walker. You can see for miles. How beautiful.
Telegraph
17-07-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Telegraph style book: Ss
S Saakashvili, Mikheil safe haven is a tautology Sainsbury's Saint Laurent, Yves Saint-Saëns, Camille (note umlaut) St Andrews (Scotland); St Andrew's (Birmingham City stadium) St Bartholomew's Hospital: May be shortened to Barts but never St Barts or St Bart's St James's Palace St John Ambulance St John's wort St Thomas' Hospital Sana'a: The capital of Yemen Santa: We prefer Father Christmas Sarkozy, Nicolas Satan: Cap S but satanic is lower case satnav Sats: Not Sats tests Savile: For Lord, Row, Club, Jimmy, Saville Theatre and Inquiry Scalextric Schiffer, Claudia schoolboy, schoolgirl: But school-leaver Schumacher, Michael Schwarzenegger, Arnold Scorsese, Martin Scotch: Used for whisky, pies, pines, mists and wool shops. Scots or Scottish preferred in other contexts Scots Porage Oats: Prisoners do porridge Scott Thomas, Kristin Scouts: Not Boy Scouts. Scout leaders: Not Scoutmasters Sea Lords: They used to work at the Admiralty seasons: Are all lower case: spring, summer, autumn, winter seasonable: Appropriate for the time of year, opportune. Its opposite us unseasonable for weather that is unexpected seasonal: Occurring regularly at a particular season (see spring). Sebag Montefiore, Simon. His wife is Santa Montefiore second home owners (three words) Seinfeld, Jerry Selfridges selfie: Not 'selfie' senior and junior: After American names should be Sr and Jr Services. The Services takes the cap S, servicemen/women do not sewerage/sewage: Sewerage is the pipes, sewage the stuff Sharia law is a tautology: Islamic law is not shear: Something is shorn off, or shears off: it never sheers off sheikh, sheikhdom Shepherd's Bush shih-tzu Shia: Not Shi'ite ship: Uses 'she' as a pronoun: 'The Princess Louise is a ship. She is a beautiful ship' Sikora, Karol: Cancer expert Sikorsky (helicopters), Sikorski (Polish politician) silicon: The element from which chips are made: silicone is a sealant and is used to make cooking utensils Sindy doll Sinn Fein: No accents ski, skier, skied, skiing Sky News, Sky Sports smelt: Not smelled Snowdonia: Not Eryri. Snowdon: Not Yr Wyddfa somebody, someone Sotheby's: With apostrophe sound bite Speaker of the House of Commons: Always capped. specialty: The specific discipline of a doctor speciality: Something that is particular to a certain person, business or institution spelt not spelled Spielberg, Steven spilt: Not spilled spin doctor: Best used only ironically, ditto the verb to spin in this context spoilt: But despoiled spokesman: Not spokeswoman, spokesperson stadiums: not stadia Starmer, Sir Keir: Not Kier Start-up state: Lower case except when part of a title (State President, Council of State, but state-owned) stationary: not moving stationery: writing paper stiletto: The plural is stilettos Stratford upon Avon strike: Not strike action strangle: If someone has been strangled they are dead; if they are alive they have been throttled. However, there is a criminal offence of strangulation in which the victim is living suicide: Do not say 'commit suicide', but that a person took their own life. The coroner records a verdict of suicide. sun: Cap only in (rare) references to it as a star. The sun is out, our sun is one of many suns, the distance between the Sun and Alpha Major is... Sunni swap: Preferred to swop swashbuckler: Not a daredevil but a swaggering bully swath: Noun, a strip swathe: The verb
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Earth is as far away from the sun as it ever gets. So why is it so hot?
The peak of summer is approaching for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, but as we prepare for more sunshine and sweltering temperatures, our planet is spinning at its farthest point from the sun. On Thursday at 3:55 p.m. ET, our planet reached what's called the aphelion — the most distant point in its orbit around the sun, roughly 3 million miles farther away than when it's closest. This happens every year in early July, which might sound backward. If we're farthest from the sun, shouldn't it be cooler? People tend to associate proximity with warmth, so it seems natural to assume the seasons are caused by changes in how far Earth is from the sun. But the planet's distance has little to do with it. The real reason for seasonal temperature changes lies in the fact that Earth is tilted. Our planet spins at an angle — about 23.5 degrees — which means different parts of the globe receive more (or less) sunlight depending on the time of year. In July, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the sun, bringing longer days and higher sun angles that lead to more direct sunlight — all of which produce summer-like heat. In contrast, the shape of Earth's orbit plays only a minor role. Although it's slightly oval-shaped rather than perfectly circular, the difference between our closest and farthest points from the sun is relatively small. Right now, Earth is about 3.1 million miles farther from the sun than it is in early January when it reaches perihelion, its closest point. Compared to its average distance of 93 million miles, that's only about a 3.3% difference. Because sunlight spreads out as it travels, even a relatively small change in distance results in about a 7% drop in the amount of solar energy reaching the planet. That's tiny compared to the effect of Earth's tilt. Just how big is the difference? Let's look at a few examples. In cities like Houston, New Orleans and Phoenix — near 30 degrees north in latitude — the amount of solar energy reaching Earth's atmosphere in summer is more than double what those cities receive in winter. Farther north, around 40 degrees, the seasonal swing is even more dramatic. Cities like New York, Denver and Columbus see solar energy climb from about 145 watts per square meter in winter to 430 in summer — nearly a 300% difference. So, while it's true that Earth is receiving less energy from the sun right now, that detail barely registers compared to the power of the planet's tilt. A slight angle in Earth's spin does far more to shape our seasonal patterns than a few million miles of extra distance ever could. In the end, it's not how close we are to the sun that makes summer feel like summer — it's how we're angled toward it.
CNN
05-07-2025
- Science
- CNN
Earth is as far away from the sun as it ever gets. So why is it so hot?
The peak of summer is approaching for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, but as we prepare for more sunshine and sweltering temperatures, our planet is spinning at its farthest point from the sun. On Thursday at 3:55 p.m. ET, our planet reached what's called the aphelion — the most distant point in its orbit around the sun, roughly 3 million miles farther away than when it's closest. This happens every year in early July, which might sound backward. If we're farthest from the sun, shouldn't it be cooler? People tend to associate proximity with warmth, so it seems natural to assume the seasons are caused by changes in how far Earth is from the sun. But the planet's distance has little to do with it. The real reason for seasonal temperature changes lies in the fact that Earth is tilted. Our planet spins at an angle — about 23.5 degrees — which means different parts of the globe receive more (or less) sunlight depending on the time of year. In July, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the sun, bringing longer days and higher sun angles that lead to more direct sunlight — all of which produce summer-like heat. In contrast, the shape of Earth's orbit plays only a minor role. Although it's slightly oval-shaped rather than perfectly circular, the difference between our closest and farthest points from the sun is relatively small. Right now, Earth is about 3.1 million miles farther from the sun than it is in early January when it reaches perihelion, its closest point. Compared to its average distance of 93 million miles, that's only about a 3.3% difference. Because sunlight spreads out as it travels, even a relatively small change in distance results in about a 7% drop in the amount of solar energy reaching the planet. That's tiny compared to the effect of Earth's tilt. Just how big is the difference? Let's look at a few examples. In cities like Houston, New Orleans and Phoenix — near 30 degrees north in latitude — the amount of solar energy reaching Earth's atmosphere in summer is more than double what those cities receive in winter. Farther north, around 40 degrees, the seasonal swing is even more dramatic. Cities like New York, Denver and Columbus see solar energy climb from about 145 watts per square meter in winter to 430 in summer — nearly a 300% difference. So, while it's true that Earth is receiving less energy from the sun right now, that detail barely registers compared to the power of the planet's tilt. A slight angle in Earth's spin does far more to shape our seasonal patterns than a few million miles of extra distance ever could. In the end, it's not how close we are to the sun that makes summer feel like summer — it's how we're angled toward it.
CNN
05-07-2025
- Science
- CNN
Earth is as far away from the sun as it ever gets. So why is it so hot?
FacebookTweetLink The peak of summer is approaching for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, but as we prepare for more sunshine and sweltering temperatures, our planet is spinning at its farthest point from the sun. On Thursday at 3:55 p.m. ET, our planet reached what's called the aphelion — the most distant point in its orbit around the sun, roughly 3 million miles farther away than when it's closest. This happens every year in early July, which might sound backward. If we're farthest from the sun, shouldn't it be cooler? People tend to associate proximity with warmth, so it seems natural to assume the seasons are caused by changes in how far Earth is from the sun. But the planet's distance has little to do with it. The real reason for seasonal temperature changes lies in the fact that Earth is tilted. Our planet spins at an angle — about 23.5 degrees — which means different parts of the globe receive more (or less) sunlight depending on the time of year. In July, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the sun, bringing longer days and higher sun angles that lead to more direct sunlight — all of which produce summer-like heat. In contrast, the shape of Earth's orbit plays only a minor role. Although it's slightly oval-shaped rather than perfectly circular, the difference between our closest and farthest points from the sun is relatively small. Right now, Earth is about 3.1 million miles farther from the sun than it is in early January when it reaches perihelion, its closest point. Compared to its average distance of 93 million miles, that's only about a 3.3% difference. Because sunlight spreads out as it travels, even a relatively small change in distance results in about a 7% drop in the amount of solar energy reaching the planet. That's tiny compared to the effect of Earth's tilt. Just how big is the difference? Let's look at a few examples. In cities like Houston, New Orleans and Phoenix — near 30 degrees north in latitude — the amount of solar energy reaching Earth's atmosphere in summer is more than double what those cities receive in winter. Farther north, around 40 degrees, the seasonal swing is even more dramatic. Cities like New York, Denver and Columbus see solar energy climb from about 145 watts per square meter in winter to 430 in summer — nearly a 300% difference. So, while it's true that Earth is receiving less energy from the sun right now, that detail barely registers compared to the power of the planet's tilt. A slight angle in Earth's spin does far more to shape our seasonal patterns than a few million miles of extra distance ever could. In the end, it's not how close we are to the sun that makes summer feel like summer — it's how we're angled toward it.
