the shape of earth's orbit around the sun is
Earth's orbit The following diagram shows the relation between the line of solstice and the line of apsides of Earth's elliptical orbit. The orbital ellipse goes through each of the six Earth images, which are sequentially the perihelion (periapsis — nearest point to the Sun) on anywhere from January 2 to January 5, the point of March equinox on March 19, 20, or 21, the point of June solstice on June 20, 21, or 22, the aphelion (apoapsis — farthest point from the Sun) on anywhere from July 3 to July 5, the September equinox on September 22, 23, or 24, and the December solstice on December 21, 22, or 23.[7] The diagram shows an exaggerated shape of Earth's orbit; the actual orbit is less eccentric than pictured.
Sun path Sun paths at any latitude and any time of the year can be determined from basic geometry.[4] The Earth's axis of rotation tilts about 23.5 degrees, relative to the plane of Earth's orbit around the Sun. As the Earth orbits the Sun, this creates the 47Â° declination difference between the solstice sun paths, as well as the hemisphere-specific difference between summer and winter.