Tonight (05/22/16), Mars will be the brightest that it has been in the past 10 years. The red planet will be so bright that you’ll be able to see it in tonight’s sky without needing a telescope.
Mars now resides opposite the sun in Earth’s sky, because on this date we are passing between it and the sun in our smaller, faster orbit.
Now opposite the sun, Mars rises in the east around sunset, climbs to its highest point in the sky at midnight, and sets in the west around sunrise.
Set a reminder on your phone so you won’t forget to go outside after dark tonight and look towards the East for your chance to see Mars.
To help you capture the event with a camera, here are a few sites that have tips for using your smartphone or DSLR to take pictures of the night sky:
How to Take Great Night Sky Photos With the iPhone
How To Take The Best Supermoon Lunar Eclipse Photos With Your iPhone Or Smartphone
Heavens Above! 5 Tips for Capturing the Night Sky with Your Smartphone
How to Photograph the Moon
[Via EarthSky.org]
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Can’t wait
Mars is always visible without a telescope. What a misleading article.
why did they miss jupiter? lol’
Thank you for the reminder. My kids and I will go look. Maybe there are plants on Mars that grow cotton candy? That’s what my 4 year old thinks at least.
We nailed this one. All three kids, my wife, and I saw all three. THANK YOU!!
Did you get any pics?
Sadly no. My kids are 3, 4, and 7. It was well past bed time, and I was just glad that they saw it. Score one for dad for getting the kids out to see the stars and planets!!
I missed out on pics too. I had planned to go out and try my hand at getting one with my phone (not easy), but my back went out yesterday afternoon and I was not able to walk around the yard without whimpering like a little baby 🙂