Blessed Interplanetary Functions

Mars

The Red Planet is about to be spectacular!This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter thatwill culminate in the closest approach between the two planets inrecorded history. The next time Mars may come this close isin 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only becertain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as60,000 years before it happens again.The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth andwill be (next to the moon) the brightest object inthe night sky. Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m.and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m. By the end of August when the two planets areclosest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty convenient to something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month. Share this with your children and grandchildren.