Close Encounter with Mars

[Taera]

If you havent seen it yet, soon Mars is coming to one of its closest ever orbits near Earth on August 27th. If you watch the sky at night you'll notice it slowly growing and becoming bigger and brighter.

Here's a link to an article:
http://www.msnbc.com/news/951524.asp

[ August 21, 2003, 02:31: Message edited by: Taera ]

[narf poit chez BOOM]

neat. i should see that.

[Dobian]

I just looked at it Last night with my 4.5" reflector. Man, that thing is bright! Can't wait to look at it next week (I'm on vacation, and can stay up really late looking at it).

[rdouglass]

I have heard folks on the US East Coast will get the best view early in the AM just before sunrise...

[oleg]

Damn British weather ! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

I can not see SUN let alone Mars http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon9.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon9.gif

[Taera]

thats irony, i saw it VERY early (was staying up till late) and im not going to see it because of those British Columbia fires - the sky is full of smoke or whatever http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon9.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon8.gif

[narf poit chez BOOM]

my guess is, it would be 85% smoke, 15% whatever. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon10.gif

[Thermodyne]

Well, we missed another prime chance to make the trip. How many more opportunities will we let go by?

[Taera]

more irony for me - the smoke seems to be clearing but the whole week is going to be cloudy. nice huh.

[Arkcon]

I can hardly wait. In my mother's home town there's an obervatory open to the public on Friday's from 8pm to midnight. It's not the closest day, nor the optimal time, and it's on the east coast so there's light polution. But it is still always cool to get to look through a 56 cm telescope.

Now the news is quoteing some sources that says people are afraid of a collision. Now, if anyone has a link to one of these kook sites or news stories, I would like to experience it, 'cause I can always use a laugh.

[geoschmo]

Originally posted by Thermodyne:
Well, we missed another prime chance to make the trip. How many more opportunities will we let go by?<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Well, probably by the time it's this close again if we are still here I think there's a good chance we will have got there. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon10.gif

[Taera]

i think its like in 79 years

[Omnicron1]

Nope wont be here!

[Kamog]

79 years? Well, maybe if you're young right now and live a long life, you just might be around the next time...

I missed Halley's Comet in 1986. It won't be back again until 2061. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon9.gif

[narf poit chez BOOM]

well, i went out, looked. couldn't see it. the radio said something about an observatory open to the publc, so maybe...

[dogscoff]

Went out on a boat Last night, so there was no light pollution, but even from the beach Mars appears bright orange to the naked eye. My father in law has a small telescope, I really ought to try to get to use it this week.Actually, my gf has a pair of old binoculars somewhere, that would be better than nothing, surely...

[Kamog]

So, tomorrow night is the big day. Let's hope for a clear sky...

[narf poit chez BOOM]

saw something that might be mars, but it wasn't bright orange. nothing else bright south, though. unless the houses are blocking my view.

[dogscoff]

nothing else bright south, though. unless the houses are blocking my view.
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Quite possible- it was really low to the horizon when I saw it.

[geoschmo]

I saw it, but I wasn't really expecting too. I thought this was all pretty much hype, but it really was bright. Much brighter then I am used to seeing things in the sky. So bright that at first I thought it was a plane until I looked again and it hadn't moved.

[tesco samoa]

http://hubblesite.org/db/2003/22/images/a/formats/full_jpg.jpg

[tesco samoa]

this is interesting as well

http://mars-news.de/color/blue.html

[Kamog]

I saw it. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

Fortunately, the sky is clear tonight. I first saw Mars when I was driving, and I looked at the sky over to the east and bit to the south. It's so bright that I could see it even with all the lights from the street and the buildings. I couldn't see any stars because of all the city lights, but Mars is so bright that I still couldn't miss it.

Then I went to the park, which is a bit darker, so that I could have a better look. It's definitely very bright, and it does have a reddish color to it. It's much brighter than any of the stars. But all I could see is a glowing point of light, because I don't have a telescope.

[Taera]

cant see it. the sky is prolly still covered with smoke, and then the rain clouds that kept pouring rain on us since ~4pm. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon8.gif havent seen stars in a long while.

[ August 28, 2003, 09:07: Message edited by: Taera ]

[Xaren Hypr]

Well, about half an hour until closest approach (if my math is corect), and even with all the lights in my apartment complex Mars is still pretty darn bright. I guess it's because of those lights, but Mars has more of a peach-orange color when I looked at it a few minutes ago.

I just wish I still had my old telescope... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon9.gif

[The FryeR K]

I Saw it on the 27 and the 28 thru my cheap telescope, it looked like the moon but red.

[Kamog]

I could still see Mars tonight. It's still pretty bright, even though it's been a few weeks. I was under the impression that you have to see it that one particular night or you'll miss it, but apparently that was not the case.

[geoschmo]

It's still the brightest thing in the sky other then the moon I believe. But now to me it doesn't have the obvious orange color like it did when it was at it's closest point.