perihelions

Noun

perihelion (plural perihelia or (deprecated) perihelions)

1. The point in the elliptical orbit of a comet, planet, etc., where it is nearest to the Sun.
   • The æquation of the Earth encreaſeth from her Aphelion, until ſhe come to the point where it's greateſt, and from thence it again decreaſeth till ſhe come to her Perihelion, or oppoſite Auge: in like manner it increaſeth from her Perihelion to the point where it's greateſt, and afterwards...1656, Vincent Wing, “Of the Annuall Motion of the Earth”, in Astronomia Instaurata: Or, A New and Compendius Restauration of Astronomie. […], London: […] R. and W. Leybourn, for the Company of...

   Synonyms:

   ϖ

   Antonyms:

   aphelion

2. (figuratively) The highest point or state; the peak, zenith.
   • [T]he magnificence of his compliment had quite shaken the general's [Ulysses S. Grant's] modesty, and that he could only say that France must come to the perihelion of her glory under such rulers as Grevy [i.e., Jules Grévy].1881 July, “Pot-pourri”, in Potter’s American Monthly: An Illustrated Magazine of History, Literature, Science and Art, volume XVII, number 115, Philadelphia, Pa.: John E. Potter & Company, […]...

   Synonyms:

   acme, apex, zenith, apogee, apotheosis, ascendance, capstone, climax, coronation, crown