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Like all planets in our solar system, Earth and Mars are in orbit around the Sun. The Earth is closer to the Sun and, therefore, runs along its orbit faster. The Earth makes two trips around the Sun in the same amount of time that Mars takes to make a trip.
Sometimes the two planets are on opposite sides of the Sun and are far apart. Other times, Earth catches up with its neighbor and pbades relatively close to it. This is what is called the closest Mars approach to Earth, and this occurs this year on July 31st. The Moon will also be near Mars that night!
Keep in mind that even during its closest approach, Mars is still more than 35 million miles away from Earth. It's really far away. So, Mars will not appear as big as the Moon in the sky, but it will look bigger than usual.
July and August will be a good time to visit Mars. With a telescope, you should normally be able to distinguish some of the features of the red planet – and sometimes even polar ice. However, a huge Martian dust storm obscures these features at this time, so fewer planetary details are visible
Save the dates
There is another date March in March: March opposition. The opposition of Mars is when Mars, the Earth and the Sun all line up, with the Earth directly in the middle. This event takes place on July 27th of this year.
Although you can see news on one of these two dates, Mars will be visible for several months. For about three weeks before and three weeks after the opposition and the closest approach, the planet will appear the same size as a skywatcher.
From July 7 to September 7
From July 7 to September 7 Mars will be the third brightest object in the sky (after the Moon and Venus), shining even more than Jupiter. The best time to see Mars during this time is several hours after sunset, when Mars will appear higher in the sky.
Mars will still be visible after July and August, but each month it will shrink in size when it travels farther. Earth in its orbit around the Sun.
Also on July 27
Right next to the eclipse In other sky news, July 27 (starting at 20:21 UTC), a lunar eclipse total will be visible in Australia, Asia, Africa, Europe and South America. For these viewers, Mars will be right next to the moon that eclipses!
If you want to look towards the future for next month, get ready for Perseid summer meteor shower. It's not too early to plan a dark sky getaway for the most popular meteor shower of the year!
You can follow NASA missions to Mars and all NASA missions at www.nasa.gov
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