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Mars is now our own Morning Star, rising about three hours before the Sun. It is located in the constellation of Leo, near the lion’s tail, Denebola, moving eastward into Virgo. It will not be of brave and commanding brilliance, however, for it will brighten only from magnitude 1.8 to 1.3 at year’s end. By next June, however, the red planet will have achieved opposition, presenting a disk of just over 20 seconds of arc, the best since 1988. But even better, wait until August 2003, when Mars will approach to within 0.373 a.u., the closest it has been to Earth since August 1924, when the Eastbay Astronomical Society was just five months old!

Mars Spectacular

The Red Planet is about to be spectacular! This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time

Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter’s gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within

34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest

object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11

arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10 p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.

By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30 a.m. That’s pretty convenient to see something that no human being has ever seen in

recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month. Share this

with your children and grandchildren. NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN