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Mars at the Solar Conjunction on October 8

2020 was a great year to see Mars. The red planet showed up like a bursting red dot of fire in our night sky. In any case, despite the fact that Mars began 2021 sparkling brilliantly, it immediately fainted. Furthermore, it proceeded to show up very faint consistently. In August, Mars vanished toward the distant horizon. Presently, Mars is at the solar conjunction, or behind the sun from Earth.


Credits: NASA


The Solar Conjunction

Mars will be closest to the Sun on 8 October 2021 (at about 9:30 IST). At the nearest approach, Mars will show up at a partition of just 0°39' from the Sun, making it absolutely imperceptible for a very long time while it is lost in the Sun's glare. 

At around a similar time, Mars will likewise be at its generally far off from the Earth – subsiding to a distance of 2.63 AU – since the two planets will lie on inverse sides of the Solar System. 

On the off chance that Mars could be seen as of now, apparently at its littlest and faintest because of its enormous distance. It would estimate 3.6 arcsec in diameter


Credits: NASA


The Opposition

Over after many months, Mars will reappear toward the west of the Sun, continuously becoming visible for ever-longer periods in the pre-dawn sky. After around a year, it will be at the opposition, when it can be seen for basically the entire night.  Opposition is the best time to see any planet as at that period of time it is the farthest from the Sun and closest to earth. However, only four planets can be at opposition- Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Mercury and Venus, due to being closer to the Sun than the earth can not be at the opposition. 


Warning: Never try to see the conjunction from a pair of binoculars or telescopes without a solar filter as it might lead to permanent damage in the eyes.


Check my previous post: How to spot ISS?

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