Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Shiktang]

Anyone know when we will see Mars in the sky as big as the moon. I have heard it will be in August, but don't know the exact date.

[PeteJB]

http://www.astronomyspacenews.com/Articles/Mars_Close_Email.htm

Will be going to the top of the world in August to see it a bit clearer.

[Robot_Teacher]

They say August 27th, but I can't fathom that it would look like another moon in the sky. Hardly not. It would be more like a bright orange star looking dot slightly brighter than what Mars typically looks like to the naked eye. If it were true that Mars were getting close enough to look as large as our moon does, NASA or another agency would had planned a rendezvous space mission to take advantage of the short distance fly by.


It's a hoax or urban legend.

[Chambertin]

http://www.ips-planetarium.org/planetarian/articles/imagesanddocs/whenwasmarsthisclose.pdf

From some net rag called the Planetarian
http://www.ips-planetarium.org/planetarian/

Id believe that before anything that has a comment about Mars being visible as anything bigger than a BB to the naked eye.

[PeteJB]

A rendezvous space mission? You make it sound so easy. And then what, take pictures? Oh wait, thats what the probes are for. Oh and I'm pretty sure we will see a bright red star - not a moon sized Mars. Mars isn't even that big to begin with and would be way too close if it were that size... That would give the Nibiru doomsayers a field day.

[blurgalurgalurga]

Apparently the email is false...here's what the link says...
"Mars Close to Earth Email August 2009
Is it true?

Not only is this not true for this year, at least part of it is not true ever.

"Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye."

If Mars ever looked as large as the moon, everyone on Earth would probably die very soon.
Now, for the rest of the email, it was mostly true when it first began circulating in the summer of 2003, it was outdated when it went around again in 2005 and 2007, and just plain false when it appeared again recently

The record approach happened in 2003 when Mars was closest to the Earth in 50,000 years.

Also, Mars was pretty close in 2005 and 2007.
Earth is currently chasing Mars around the sun. The next time we "lap" it and get pretty close to Mars (when Mars is in opposition) is around January 29, 2010.

Don't believe everything you receive in an email and be slow to forward most things."

Bummer, I was excited.

[PeteJB]

I think anyone who paid attention to their science lessons at school would know automatically that there is no way a close pass such as that will happen. Not to say it won't in a billion years, according to a BBC article there is even a chance of collision at that time.

[djsmnc]

Jesus will return before Mars ever appears as big as the moon.

[blurgalurgalurga]

No he won't.

[Sergio Stefanuto]