Check out the sky!!
 

I was sent this by dear old mom.Sounds like a great once in a lifetime time opportunity.


Mars

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 10p.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 12:30a.m. That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar atthe 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

Hoax
 

This was going around last year and its a hoax.

Werent' we supposed to see Mars last year????
 

Hmmmm....maybe not?
 

Check this out...from www.spaceweather.com:

"BEWARE THE MARS HOAX: Just when you thought it was safe to read your email, a new Mars Hoax is spreading. The widely-circulated message tells us "the Red Planet is about to be spectacular. On August 27th, Mars ... will look as large as the full Moon." Really? (continued below)


"Here are the facts: On August 27, 2006, Mars will be on the other side of the solar system, 385 million km from Earth. It'll look tiny and dim, nothing like the full Moon. So forget about Mars. If you want to see something truly astronomical on August 27th, look east before dawn for a pretty conjunction of Venus and Saturn: sky map."

Mars opposition
 

The OP was true ... in 2003 :D Every 26 months the Earth and Mars cozy up so it was semi-true again in late 2005 and will be again on Dec 18'th, 2007 (Opposition will occur Dec 24'th, a kinda planetary X-mas present :coolsm: ). FWIW, an article from 2003 .... http://www.space.com/scienceastronom..._030121-1.html

Mom is always right?
 

There goes all my faith in my beloved mom.Thanks,I'll pass on the bad news.