The Earth and Mars are about to get very close but not so close that Mars will appear the size of the Moon as some mystics who spread their teachings on the Internet believe
Recently, rumors have spread that have gained wings, mainly in the USA, and were published on the Internet and in the tabloids: "The Red Planet is going to be spectacular." Earth and Mars are approaching the shortest distance between them in recorded history. On August 27, Mars will be as big as the full moon." Rumor has it. And finally "no one living today will see it again."
These are the summaries of e-mail messages that are distributed rapidly on the web. But only the first sentence is true. Mars is going to be spectacular, but everything else is a hoax.
Here are the facts: The Earth and Mars are indeed approaching each other and the greatest approach will be precisely on October 30 (the previous time was indeed in August - 2003). On this date, at 0319 GMT the distance will be 69 million kilometers. To the naked eye, Mars will simply appear as a bright red star, a point of light the size of a pinhead, certainly not as wide as the full moon. Disappointed? don't be If Mars does come close and compete with the Moon, its gravity will change the Earth's orbit and cause huge and deadly tides.
69 million kilometers is a good distance. At this distance, Mars shines more brightly than any other body in the sky except the Moon, Sun and Venus. The degree of brightness of Mars will be minus 2.3. Even viewers in places with less than favorable visibility will be able to notice that it rises with sunset and is at its peak height at midnight.
Many certainly remember a previous encounter with Mars about two years ago, on August 27, 2003. It was indeed the closest space in recorded history and indeed millions of people watched it when the distance between Earth and Mars shrank to 56 million kilometers. The approach in October, to a distance of 69 million kilometers will be similar. To casual observers, Mars will appear as bright and beautiful in 2005 as it did in 2003.
Although there are still several months until approach, Mars is a prominent space object in the morning sky. Before sunrise, it is the brightest object in the eastern sky, and cannot be ignored. If you have a telescope, even a small one, aim it at Mars. You will see the ice cap of the South Pole and strange dark marks on the surface of the planet.
One day humans will walk among these dark regions, explore them and analyze their composition, possibly even mine ice from the polar caps to supply their settlements. This is one of the goals in NASA's current space vision - to return to the moon, and visit Mars and beyond.
Every day the appearance of Mars improves. Mars is approaching, and this is not a stretch.
