Mars has been the closest to Earth since 2003

According to astronomers, Mars will be the closest to Earth at 11:45 am international time since 2003 and is the closest planet to Earth until 2016. Mars can be observed. with the naked eye until early February 2008 when the planet moved in the opposite direction to the sun and approached the earth.

The distance between Earth and Mars is about the shortest every 2 years and 2 months. This recurring approach occurs out due to different trajectories of the two planets. The Earth rotates around the sun twice as fast as Mars and covers Mars over a 2-year cycle. The orbits of these two planets are elliptical, so the closest distance between them is not always the same.

This year, the distance between Earth and Mars is about 87 million km, not nearly 2003, only 55, 36 km but still can be observed and at night.

Despite not achieving the ideal distance as in 2003, the Hubble telescope still captures detailed images showing that the Red planet does not appear dust storms, instead, ice crystals in the far north. and the south pole of this planet.

When the clouds dissipate, we can observe Mars sparkling on the Northeast horizon at sunset. Its red color makes Mars stand out from the winter stars in the sky. Then Mars will fade away from the end of January. Visually, Mars is no different from an orange, but if viewed with a medium-sized telescope, the planet is disc-shaped and carries many details.

Mars is considered a planet similar to Mercury, Venus and the Earth in our solar system. The surface of Mars has been severely altered by volcanoes, collisions with meteorites and dust storms occurring in the planet's atmosphere.

(Photo: Daleandersen.seti.org)