Mars Spectacular -- August 2005

[Kit Sober]

Received this today. Any verification? Who from where can we see it? Prophetic significance, etc.

quote:

The Red Planet is about to be spectacular! This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history.

The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287 Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on

Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky.

It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification.

By August 27, Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.

Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.

By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m.

That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history.

NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN.

[LG]

Kit,

That close approach is past. It occurred on August 27, 2003, but Mars never appeared to be anywhere near as large as the moon. The apparent size of the moon is about 30 arc minutes, some 70 times larger than Mars has ever appeared.

[GeorgeStGeorge]

It was a fairly cloudy night down here (SE Texas) on 8/27/03; but, even so, Mars was noticeably larger than it had been before. Not even close to the size of the moon, though!

George

[GarthP2000]

Now why must something like this have some sort of 'prophetic' significance?

[Ham]

We'd have to change the song:

"When the Mars hits your eye like a big custard pie that's.. well, something, anyway"

[Ham]

Maybe THIS WEB SITE will answer the question.