OUR PLANET. 
189 
Tlie earth revolves around the siin in 365 days, 5 
hours, 48 minutes, and 48 seconds, in a slightly ellip¬ 
tical path. June 
21st it is farthest 
from the sun, at 
aphelion it is called 
—that is, in round 
numbers, 94,350,- 
000 miles, and De¬ 
cember 21st it is 
nearest to the sun, 
at perihelion, or 
91,240,000 miles. 
In winter it is 3,- 
110,000 miles near¬ 
er to the sun than 
in summer. 
Imagine the sur¬ 
face of the table 
the ecliptic, and in 
the center a half 
apple or orange 
representing the 
sun, with a half pea 
for the earth re¬ 
volving about it. 
Stick a pin into 
the pea at the 
proper angle to 
represent the axis. 
ISTow move the pea 
Fig. 93. —Mars viewed from four differ¬ 
ent quarters. (By Barnard, from 
Comstock’s Astronomy.) 
Fig. 94.—Mars, February 18, 1884. 
