http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/~barnes/ASTR110L_F05/marsviewing.html
In Fall 2005, Mars will come nearly as close to Earth as it did two years ago; in some ways, this passage will provide better views than the last one.
This table provides simulated images and other data for Mars every Wednesday from late September through the end of the semester. Each date links to an image showing how Mars will look at 21:30 HT (9:30 pm). The altitude column gives the angle between Mars and the horizon as seen from Honolulu; large altitudes provide the best views. The diameter column gives the angular diameter of the planet. The longitude column indicates what part of Mars will be facing the Earth. The final column lists some surface features which may be visible.
| Date | Altitude (degrees) |
Diameter (arc-seconds) |
Long. (degrees) |
Visible Features | |||
| 09/28/05 | 7.0 | 17.6 | 248 | M. Tyrrhenum, M. Clmmerium | |||
| 10/05/05 | 13.5 | 18.5 | 185 | M. Clmmerium, M. Sirenum | |||
| 10/12/05 | 20.6 | 19.3 | 122 | M. Sirenum, Olympus | |||
| 10/19/05 | 28.4 | 19.8 | 59 | M. Erythraeum, Solis Lacus | |||
| 10/26/05 | 36.8 | 20.2 | 357 | Sinus Meridiani, Sinus Sabaeus | |||
| 11/02/05 | 45.4 | 20.1 | 296 | Syrtis Major, Hellas | |||
| 11/09/05 | 54.2 | 19.7 | 234 | M. Tyrrhenum, M. Clmmerium | |||
| 11/16/05 | 62.7 | 19.0 | 172 | M. Clmmerium, M. Sirenum | |||
| 11/23/05 | 70.6 | 18.0 | 110 | M. Sirenum, Solius Lacus | |||
| 11/30/05 | 77.7 | 16.9 | 47 | M. Erythraeum, M. Acidalium | |||
| 12/07/05 | 82.9 | 15.7 | 344 | Sinus Meridiani, Sinus Sabaeus |
Animation showing Mars as seen from the Earth each night from 07/31/05 to 12/30/05 at 21:00 HT (08/01/05 to 12/31/05 at 07:00 UT). This animation shows one frame per day; Mars completes slightly less than one revolution between frames and thus appears to rotate backwards. Generated using NASA's Solar System Simulator.
Resources for amateur and professional observers. Has links to ongoing observing projects.
Sky and Telescope page with documentation and link to Mars Profiler, a JavaScript utility useful for predicting visible features at any given time.
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Joshua E. Barnes
(barnes@ifa.hawaii.edu)
Last modified: September 30, 2005 http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/~barnes/ASTR110L_F05/marsviewing.html |
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