Foxyangel0425
07-30-2003, 03:06 AM
CLOSE ENCOUNTER WITH MARS
>
> Never again in your lifetime will the Red Planet be so spectacular.
> This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars, 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.
> The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within
> 34,649,589 miles 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 he naked eye.
>
> Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August, Mars will rise
> in the east at 10 p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m. But 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 when it comes to seeing something that no human
> has 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 with your children and grandchildren. No one alive today will
> ever see this again.
>
> Never again in your lifetime will the Red Planet be so spectacular.
> This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars, 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.
> The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within
> 34,649,589 miles 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 he naked eye.
>
> Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August, Mars will rise
> in the east at 10 p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m. But 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 when it comes to seeing something that no human
> has 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 with your children and grandchildren. No one alive today will
> ever see this again.