Explanation:
Mars
is at
opposition
tonight, opposite the Sun in planet Earth's sky.
Of course, it will be easy to spot because
Mars appears
close to tonight's Full Moon, also opposite the Sun in
Earth's night sky in the constellation Cancer.
For this opposition,
Mars remains
just over 99 million kilometers away,
not a particularly close approach for
the Red Planet.
Still, this sharp view
of Mars recorded on January 22nd is an
example of the telescopic images possible in the coming days.
The planet's whitish north polar cap is at the upper right.
Mars' tiny red disk is about 14
arcseconds in
angular diameter, less than 1/100th the diameter
of the Full Moon.
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