* Astronomy

Some of the world's leading physicists are gathering at Imperial College London this week for the 13th International Symposium on Particles, Strings and Cosmology. Over 200 delegates from around the world will attend more than 100 talks by renowned scientists including Professor Stephen Hawking and Nobel prize-winner, Professor Gerard 't Hooft.
The conference is bringing together experts from three distinct areas of physics: particle physicists who study the elementary particles that make up matter and radiation, string theorists whose model of physics is built on one-dimensional extended objects called strings, and cosmologists who use observations and mathematical tools to analyse the universe as a whole. The aim of the event is to encourage beneficial collaborative working across these distinct disciplines and to promote the exchange of ideas.

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Earth does not orbit the Sun  in a perfect circle. The orbit is slightly elliptical (eccentric), and the distance between  the Earth and the sun changes a little bit from day to day.  On 2007,  July 7th,  the Earth reaches its most distant point from the Sun for the year -- a point astronomers call "aphelion". At this date the  Earth will be  152,097,053 kilometres  (8.44 Light Minutes) from the Sun, which is about 5 million km further away than its closest point (perihelion).
Its minimum distance from the Sun of 147,103, 622 km is  in early January.
The difference between the mean Sun-Earth distance at aphelion and perihelion is  less than 2%.
Since Earth is at its furthest from the Sun, average global sunlight arriving in July is about 7% less intense than it is in January. However, the average temperature of Earth at aphelion is about 2.3C higher than it is at perihelion - Earth is actually warmer when it is further from the Sun.
This is because  the Earth has more landmass in the northern hemisphere and more water in the south. During July in the northern summer - the mainly continental northern half of our planet is tilted toward the Sun, and the land masses heat up more easily than the oceans.
The Earth is now also orbiting at its slowest velocity around the Sun.
The date  of aphelion changes from year to year as the  direction of the  earths elliptical orbit  creeps  around  the Sun. Roughly, the date of aphelion  advances by roughly one week  for every 400 years.

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Three meteor showers from different constellations will be visible in the horizon during the month of July, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.

"The meteor showers, which may even consist of fireballs or glowing shooting stars, may grace the sky as they pass by this month" - Jose Mendoza, weather specialist from the Atmospheric, Geophysical and Space Sciences Branch (AGSSB).

The Pegasids will be seen starting July 7 and will last until the 13th. Its estimated peak date is July 9, where a maximum of three meteors can be seen shooting up per hour.
The Southern Delta Aquarids is best observed from July 28 to 31, peaking before midnight and onward on July 28.
The Alpha Capricornids meteor shower will be active from July 3 to August 15 with estimated peak date on July 30.

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The constellation Virgo spreads across the southwest this evening. Look for its brightest star, blue-white Spica. It remains in view until the wee hours of the morning.
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