Literary notes about Perihelion (AI summary)
In literature, "perihelion" is employed both in its strict astronomical sense and as a metaphor for peak moments or turning points. Often used to denote the precise point in a celestial body's orbit where it is closest to the sun—as in technical discussions of comets and planets ([1], [2])—the term is also imbued with symbolic meaning. Writers use it to represent moments of brilliance or transformation, suggesting that just as a comet flares at its closest approach to the sun, a person or event might reach a moment of highest intensity or impact ([3], [4]). In some instances, the word even takes on a lyrical quality to evoke images of idealized beauty or pivotal change, weaving the grandeur of celestial mechanics into human drama ([5], [6]).
- They were within a few miles of perihelion, the point at which they would be closest to Sol.
— from Rip Foster in Ride the Gray Planet by Harold L. (Harold Leland) Goodwin - Perihelion , the point on the orbit of a planet or comet nearest the sun.
— from The Nuttall Encyclopædia Being a Concise and Comprehensive Dictionary of General Knowledge by P. Austin Nuttall - We were flying now, flying as comets fly to perihelion.
— from The Wit and Humor of America, Volume IV. (of X.) - You're at your best, Your perihelion, when you're silentest.
— from The Wit and Humor of America, Volume IV. (of X.) - At the perihelion of Adrienne's Dianalike sway over French hearts, a new social lion arrived in Paris.
— from Superwomen by Albert Payson Terhune - Love is the Perihelion of the fair sex; nay, it is the transit of every one of those Venuses over the sun of the ideal world.
— from Flower, Fruit, and Thorn Pieces; or, the Wedded Life, Death, and Marriage of Firmian Stanislaus Siebenkaes, Parish Advocate in the Burgh of Kuhschnappel. by Jean Paul
