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Washington, July 27 – March can be observed by the human eye with the utmost clarity The last 15 years from this midnight, thanks to the orbits of the two planets have made that They are at the closest point in this period, explained today to Efe NASA scientist Gerónimo Villanueva.
"Mars it approaches the Earth every two years, but at that moment, it will approach its orbit more than the other times and we will see it very bright and bigger than usual" Villanueva says, an astronomer of Argentine origin The Goddard Space Center of NASA
According to expert calculations, March will be about 57.6 million kilometers on Tuesday, July 31, compared to 100 million kilometers that is in another faith However, people will be able to see this "special" event since midnight today from anywhere in the world.
"To do this, they should look at the moon and, on the right, they can find a red-orange dot brighter than the normal-Mars and, by their side, another planet: Saturn" detailed the scientific planet.
This astronomical phenomenon, which will be given again in 2033 it occurs due to "relatively simple" circumstances, according to Villanueva.
The Earth makes a return to the sun every year (terrestrial) and March both, so both the planets are aligned and are closer than usual.
However, the orbit of Mars is "very eccentric" , that is to say that there are times when it is farthest from the Sun.
Thus, the orbit of the red planet, one of the more irregular solar system, and that of the Earth are aligned with the Sun synchronously every fifteen years.
From the NASA, this opportunity represents a great opportunity for Hubble Space Telescope researchers, which operates "at its peak" since its launch in 1990.
"Hubble allows us to observe the Solar System and outside of it. for a long time; It's a very comprehensive information platform that helps us understand, for example, how climates are changing in different planets, "Villanueva said.
In the case of Mars, Hubble captured an image last week where it is seen that The Red Planet is covered by a huge cloud of dust, which has led to a "global storm" in this world.
This knowledge is "very important" for the US space agency, which has a series of robots on the Martian surface.
NASA, in fact, has recently lost touch with the rover explorer "Opportunity", which uses solar panels as a source of energy.
Because of this Hubble-documented dust storm, "Opportunity" "It does not operate the necessary sunlight and went into hibernation until its panels were cleaned and that the Martian atmosphere be clarified. "
One of the greatest goals of all such as this research, no doubt, is the arrival of man to Mars the planet that these weeks can be clearly observed by millions of people on Earth.
This mission to Mars of "very logistical complex" would last 3 years because, with the current technology, it takes 6 months to get there. "
Once the astronaut has reached Mars, both planets would not be aligned, so you should wait two years for it to be
In addition to the 6 months back, the NASA scientist reminded that he should build a launch pad on Mars , a kind of Cape Canaveral on the surface of Mars.We are working so that within 10 to 20 years, we can send the first man or the first woman to Mars "said Villanueva, who predicted that this person "has not yet arrived at the university". anonymous, without his aberlo, will be at midnight to March, the planet that will try to conquer in the coming decades.
Alex Segura Lozano, EFE
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