This month, Mars observers within the Northern Hemisphere will get a spectacle not seen in over a decade: The Pink Planet will likely be close to its highest level within the sky whereas near Earth at opposition — the time when Mars is at its brightest and greatest for the yr.
Opposition happens at 12:36 a.m. EST Dec. 8, simply seven days after the Pink Planet makes its closest method to Earth, inside 50.6 million miles (81.4 million kilometers) of our planet. Not since January 2007 has the planet been so excessive within the northern sky whereas so near Earth — and it’ll not occur once more till November 2037.
Throughout the weeklong interval between shut method and opposition, Mars will seem 17″ in diameter (17.2″ at most) and shine at magnitude –1.9 — simply 0.6 magnitude dimmer than Jupiter, which can reign overhead with a frosty rose-colored mild after sundown.
Bare-eye observers will be capable to observe the Pink Planet because it strikes between the horns of Taurus the Bull, turning into the first beacon in an acute triangle with the reddish stars Betelgeuse and Aldebaran. What’s extra, the Full Moon will occult Mars the evening of Dec. 7/8, including one other dimension to this unfolding drama. It’s per week of Mars observing to not be missed.
Prepared for its close-up
At opposition, Mars will lie immediately reverse the Solar, rising within the east because the Solar units within the west and reaching its highest level within the evening sky round midnight. As with the Full Moon (which happens when the Moon is at opposition), a telescopic view will present a totally illuminated Mars. And whereas the martian disk will likely be 5.4″ smaller than throughout its 2020 opposition, observers at mid-northern latitudes will see the planet some 70° excessive — 20° increased than in 2020.
For those who miss the date of shut method or opposition, that’s OK: The planet will stay 17″ in obvious diameter for a full month, from mid-November to mid-December. Assuming Mars shouldn’t be coated by a worldwide dust storm, you should have ample time to survey the complete planet at primarily its largest for the yr.
What face Mars presents will rely on the time of your remark. Mars completes a full rotation in 24.6 hours, so if you happen to observe the planet on the identical time each evening, you will note its darkish options again up by about 10° each day, creating an illusory retrograde rotation interval of round 36 days. On any given evening, if you happen to watch Mars for 2 hours, it is possible for you to to look at a further 30° of longitude.
The area of Mars dealing with Earth will likely be roughly the identical at its closest method (Nov. 30 at 9:11 p.m. EST; longitude 250°) and at opposition (Dec. 8 at 12:35 a.m. EST; 249°). The darkish floor options Mare Cimmerium and Mare Tyrrhenum will share the south-central a part of the disk. In the meantime, Syrtis Main will likely be nearer to the limb on the next facet (that which has an area time earlier within the day, “following” the previous facet because the planet rotates) of the martian central meridian (the imaginary line that runs from pole to pole and bisects the disk). Notice that come opposition, the south polar cap ought to have drastically receded, with maybe only a pip of frosty mild seen. Nevertheless, the North Polar Hood — a large icy cloud that types over the martian north pole throughout northern winter — could also be distinguished.
