Star gazers, it's full Mars tonight!
Star gazers, it's full Mars tonight!
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Star gazers, try your luck tonight. If you happen to be outdoors,
look up to the eastern sky and -- if it is not cloudy or rainy --
you just might spot a bright red shining star that does not
flicker. There you go, it is the red planet in a full circle.
Mars, which is often associated with masculine energy and the
god of war, can be viewed as a full circle as it is almost
aligned with the Earth, giving people an ideal view of the
planet.
"Mars can rarely be seen in a full circle. It has a monthly
cycle that aligns with the earth and this month it will rise on
Saturday night. We call it full Mars, as in a full Moon," said
Jakarta Amateur Astronomer Association head Djuhana Wijayakusuma.
However, Djuhana explained that the planet would not be too
obvious as it will only be 1/140 of the size of the Moon as seen
from Earth.
Djuhana added that the planet was going to be in its
transition phase, moving from the constellation of Pisces to
Taurus.
"The easiest way to recognize the planet is to face north and
look up around 30 degrees to the right."
"People interested in viewing the red planet with the naked
eye can check out the sky at around 11 p.m. on Saturday," he
said, adding that the amateur astronomers were planning to
observe the planet on their own as the city's planetarium would
not be open.
However, according to Titi Rayasti, an officer from the
Planetarium at Taman Ismail Marzuki, Central Jakarta, it would
schedule several observations in September and October.
Mars, one of the Earth's closest neighbors, will be around
69.4 million kilometers away at the end of October, while tonight
it rotates at a distance of around 103 million kilometers from
Earth.
The days between July and September are the best days to
observe the planet with the naked eye as both planets are in
their yearly cycle when they approach each other.
On Aug. 27, 2003, separated by only around 55.7 million
kilometers, the red planet was the closest it has been to earth
in the last 60,000 years. It was probably the best time for
Martians to attack the earth, a foreign daily jokingly said.
On that day people crowded the Taman Ismail Marzuki
Planetarium and Boscha Observatory in Lembang, Bandung, to
witness the rare phenomenon.
The occasion is special as both planets have an elliptical
orbit that rarely meets.
Those who miss this remarkable natural phenomenon will have to
wait until the planet approaches the Earth again on Aug. 28 --
285 years from now. (003)