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The Collaborative International Dictionary
Perihelia

Perihelion \Per`i*hel"ion\, Perihelium \Per`i*he"li*um\, n.; pl. Perihelia. [NL., fr. Gr. ? about, near + ? the sun.] (Astron.) That point of the orbit of a planet or comet which is nearest to the sun; -- opposed to aphelion.

Wiktionary
perihelia

n. 1 (plural of perihelion English) 2 (plural of perihelium English)

WordNet
perihelion
  1. n. periapsis in solar orbit; the point in the orbit of a planet or comet where it is nearest to the sun [ant: aphelion]

  2. [also: perihelia (pl)]

perihelia

Usage examples of "perihelia".

When a sun ray hit its crystal eyes, arcs of light glistened around its head like the Perihelia spirits, also called Sun Lizards, that guarded the temple.

Ordinarily, comets are conspicuous at their perihelia, as being their shortest distances from the sun, which is the focus of their orbit, and inasmuch as a parabola is but an ellipse with its axis indefinitely produced, for some short portion of its pathway the orbit may be indifferently considered either one or the other.

As Kamoj watched, a sunray hit the lizard’s crystal eyes and arcs of light appeared on either side of its head, an effect created by the temple’s ancient architect to mimic the Perihelia spirits, sometimes called Sun Lizards or Jul Lizards, that guarded the temple.

During winter, when ice crystals filled the air, Perihelia and Halo spirits graced the heavens in arcs and rings, and even appeared around the head of a favored person’s shadow when it lay across a dew-covered expanse of tubemoss at dawn.

These Earth-crossing NEOs typically have perihelia at about one astronomical unit.