Tag Archives: Mars

Moon, Occultation, Planets

Planetary Alignment & Mars Occultation

Planetary Alignment

Tomorrow morning (Monday, February 17, 2020) be on the look out for a nice planetary alignment. If you are up early tomorrow morning and have a good view of the southeastern sky be sure to check out Saturn, Jupiter, Mars and the Moon as they line up in that order.

President’s Day Planetary Alignment

Additionally, for those in the DFW area the International Space Station will be making a fairly bright pass (-0.6 mag) right through this line up! In fact, the space station should pass between Saturn and Jupiter around 6:37 a.m. See the screen shot above that I made from Stellarium for more information regarding the alignment and passing of the ISS through them on Monday, February 17th 2020.

Mars Occulation

There’s more! The next morning Tuesday, Feb. 18th the Moon will occult or pass in front of the planet Mars. Complete details of the timing of this event from numerous locations in the U.S. can be found on the International Occultation Timing Association’s (IOTA) web page.
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Spacecraft

Send Your Name on the InSight Mars Lander

In March 2016 NASA’s InSight Mars lander is scheduled to blast off. “InSight: short for (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) is a NASA Discovery Program mission that will place a single geophysical lander on Mars to study its deep interior.

The solar arrays on NASA's InSight lander are deployed in this test inside a clean room at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.
The solar arrays on NASA’s InSight lander are deployed in this test inside a clean room at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

 

InSight will launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, in March 2016 and land on Mars Sept. 28, 2016.

Mars enthusiasts around the world can participate in NASA’s journey to Mars by adding their names to a silicon microchip headed to the Red Planet aboard NASA’s InSight Mars lander.

“Our next step in the journey to Mars is another fantastic mission to the surface,” said Jim Green, director of planetary science at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “By participating in this opportunity to send your name aboard InSight to the Red Planet, you’re showing that you’re part of that journey and the future of space exploration.”

Submissions will be accepted until Sept. 8. To send your name to Mars aboard InSight, go to:

http://mars.nasa.gov/participate/send-your-name/insight/

 

Eclipse, Moon, Planets

Mars @ Opposition & a Total Lunar Eclipse

This month Mars is at opposition (opposite the sun in the sky as seen from Earth). This means our planet is closer to Mars and thus Mars is brighter (-1.5 mag) in our sky, well placed for telescopic observation and generally a lot more interesting to view. Here are some keys dates. On April 8,  2014 Mars will be at opposition (distance to earth: 0.621 AU, brightness: -1.5 mag, diameter: 15.08″). On April 14, 2014 Mars makes its closest approach to Earth (distance to earth: 0.618 AU, brightness: -1.4 mag, diameter: 15.16″). This will be a great time to get out and observe the red planet through a telescope, it’s polar ice caps and light and dark regions, and also how the planet changes over time. It’s not uncommon for dust storms to occur and totally change how we see the planet.

Moon and Mars on morning of 4/15/2014
Moon and Mars in Virgo early on the morning of 4/15/2014.

Continue reading Mars @ Opposition & a Total Lunar Eclipse →

Spacecraft

Submit your name and a message to be sent to Mars on MAVEN.

MAVEN Spacecraft

At this posting there are less than 60 days left to get your name and a message added to the MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) mission. According to the MAVEN web site everybody on the planet is welcome to participate. Your name will be written to a DVD and sent into Mars orbit on the spacecraft.

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission (MAVEN), set to launch this year, will explore the planet’s upper atmosphere, ionosphere and interactions with the sun and solar wind. Scientists will use MAVEN data to determine the role that loss of volatile compounds, such as CO2, N2, and H2O, from the Mars atmosphere to space has played over time, giving insight into the history of Mars atmosphere and climate, liquid water, and planetary habitability.