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===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/08 Sunday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 148 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1
Today on Earth: 2025/04/13 Sunday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 069.3 Sol Number: 148 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038148
Solar Longitude: 068.9 Sol Number: 147 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038147
Solar Longitude: 068.4 Sol Number: 146 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038146
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due May 31, 2025
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,230,666 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +05865 <= +0244 km/hour at 12 on 04/13 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,224,801 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +07356 <= +0307 km/hour at 12 on 04/12 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,217,445 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +08847 <= +0369 km/hour at 12 on 04/11 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: PGC 1677547 above path Day 0 – 0 ahead
PGC 22470 below path Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 – 1 past
HIP 39077 above path Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 – 2 past – last day for 39077
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/13 188,216,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/12 186,764,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/11 185,407,000 (increasing)
#
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 148 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 148 is Sunday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/14/2025, 13:00:01 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 04m 34.2s Dec +22° 44' 48.9" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.63 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,235,041 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 189,523,079 km [22.4 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
69.7
Sol number:
149
Offline
Like button can go here
===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/09 Monday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 149 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1
Today on Earth: 2025/04/14 Monday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 069.7 Sol Number: 149 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038149
Solar Longitude: 069.3 Sol Number: 148 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038148
Solar Longitude: 068.9 Sol Number: 147 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038147
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due May 31, 2025 Note velocity of Mars is 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,235,041 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +04375 <= +0182 km/hour at 12 on 04/14 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,230,666 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +05865 <= +0244 km/hour at 12 on 04/13 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,224,801 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +07356 <= +0307 km/hour at 12 on 04/12 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: TYC 1926-1312-1 below Day 0 – 0 ahead
PGC 1677547 above path Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 – 1 past
PGC 22470 below path Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 – 2 past Last day for 22470
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/14 189,682,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/13 188,216,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/12 186,764,000 (increasing)
#
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 149 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 149 is Monday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/15/2025, 13:00:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 06m 14.1s Dec +22° 38' 32.8" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.64 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,237,924 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 190,939,381 km [22.5 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
70.2
Sol number:
150
Mars is approaching aphelion. Per NASA (per Google) the minimum velocity of Mars along it's orbit is 21.97 km/s.
TheSkyLive.com web site has been showing the velocity as 22.0 km/s for some time. The rate of change of the distance from the Sun has been decreasing toward zero at the rate of 62 kilometers per day for the past week.
Google found a web site that predicts Mars aphelion on April 16, 2025.
Today is April 15th, and while the rate of decrease of the distance of Mars to the Sun is near zero, it will not be there for a bit less than two days.
In-The-Sky.org predicts aphelion at 13:38 PDT (0:38 UTC) on April 16th.
In Mars year 37, aphelion occurred on Sol 152. It ** should ** occur on the same sol in year 38, but we'll see.
(th)
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===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/10 Tuesday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 150 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1
Today on Earth: 2025/04/15 Tuesday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 070.2 Sol Number: 150 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038150
Solar Longitude: 069.7 Sol Number: 149 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038149
Solar Longitude: 069.3 Sol Number: 148 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038148
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due April 16, 2025 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars is 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,237,924 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +02883 <= +0120 km/hour at 12 on 04/15 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,235,041 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +04375 <= +0182 km/hour at 12 on 04/14 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,230,666 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +05865 <= +0244 km/hour at 12 on 04/13 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: mini-Boomer HIP 39659 Day 0 – 0 ahead
TYC 1926-1312-1 below Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 – 1 past (last day for 1312)
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/15 191,165,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/14 189,682,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/13 188,216,000 (increasing)
#
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 150 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 150 is Monday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
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Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/16/2025, 13:01:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 07m 55.1s Dec +22° 32' 10.3" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.64 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,239,315 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 192,355,779 km [22.7 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
70.6
Sol number:
151
Mars will pass through aphelion tn the current Sol, and the change will show up in tomorrow's report.
(th)
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===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/11 Wednesday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 151 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1 One day note: Aphelion will occur today.
Today on Earth: 2025/04/16 Wednesday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 070.6 Sol Number: 151 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038151 << Aphelion will occur this Sol
Solar Longitude: 070.2 Sol Number: 150 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038150
Solar Longitude: 069.7 Sol Number: 149 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038149
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due April 16, 2025 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars is 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,239,315 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +01391 <= +0059 km/hour at 12 on 04/16 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,237,924 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +02883 <= +0120 km/hour at 12 on 04/15 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,235,041 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +04375 <= +0182 km/hour at 12 on 04/14 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: Star TYC 1389-155-1 below path Day 0 – 0 ahead
HIP 39659 Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 – 1 past
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/16 129,609,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/15 191,165,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/14 189,682,000 (increasing)
#
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 151 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 151 is Wednesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place Holder for today's Calendar update:
Mars has passed Aphelion in Year 38
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/17/2025, 13:00:08 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 09m 37.4s Dec +22° 25' 42.4" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.67 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,239,214 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 193,769,354 km [22.9 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
71
Sol number:
152
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===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/12 Thursday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 152 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1
Today on Earth: 2025/04/17 Thursday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 071.0 Sol Number: 152 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038152
Solar Longitude: 070.6 Sol Number: 151 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038151 << Aphelion occurred this Sol
Solar Longitude: 070.2 Sol Number: 150 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038150
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due April 16, 2025 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars is 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,239,214 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -00101 <= -0004 km/hour at 12 on 04/17 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,239,315 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +01391 <= +059 km/hour at 12 on 04/16 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,237,924 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +02883 <= +120 km/hour at 12 on 04/15 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: PGC 1670370 Day 0 – 0 above and ahead
TYC 1389-155-1 below path Day 0 – 0 ahead – Day 1 – 1 past
HIP 39659 Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 – 12 past Last day for 39659
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/17 194,139,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/16 192,609,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/15 191,165,000 (increasing)
#
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 152 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 152 is Thursday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today' Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/18/2025, 13:00:11 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 11m 20.3s Dec +22° 19' 08.2" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.68 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,237,622 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 195,182,685 km [23.1 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
71.5
Sol number:
153
The velocity of Mars will be gradually increasing over the next 334 Sols until perihelion occurs.
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===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/13 Friday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 153 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1
Today on Earth: 2025/04/18 Friday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 071.5 Sol Number: 153 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038153
Solar Longitude: 071.0 Sol Number: 152 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038152
Solar Longitude: 070.6 Sol Number: 151 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038151 << Aphelion occurred this Sol
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due April 16, 2025 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars is 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,237,622 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -01592 <= -0066 km/hour at 12 on 04/18 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,239,214 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -00101 <= -0004 km/hour at 12 on 04/17 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,239,315 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is +01391 <= +059 km/hour at 12 on 04/16 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: PGC 1665309 Day 0 – 0 below and ahead
PGC 1670370 Day 0 – 0 above and ahead Day 1 – 1 past and likely last day for 370
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/18 195,563,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/17 194,139,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/16 192,609,000 (increasing)
#
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 153 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 153 is Friday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/19/2025, 13:00:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 13m 04.2s Dec +22° 12' 28.2" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.69 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,234,539 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 196,594,539 km [23.3 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
71.9
Sol number:
154
Offline
Like button can go here
===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/14 Saturday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 154 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1
Today on Earth: 2025/04/19 Saturday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 071.9 Sol Number: 154 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038154
Solar Longitude: 071.5 Sol Number: 153 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038153
Solar Longitude: 071.0 Sol Number: 152 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038152
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due April 16, 2025 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars is 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,234,539 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -03083 <= -0128 km/hour at 12 on 04/19 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,237,622 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -01592 <= -0066 km/hour at 12 on 04/18 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,239,214 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -00101 <= -0004 km/hour at 12 on 04/17 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: PGC 23058 below path Day 0 – 0 Ahead
PGC 1665309 Day 0 – 0 below and ahead Day 1 – 1 past
PGC 1670370 Day 0 – 0 above and ahead Day 1 – 2 past and definitely last day for 370
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/19 196,999,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/18 195,563,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/17 194,139,000 (increasing)
#
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 154 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 154 is Saturday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/20/2025, 13:00:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 14m 49.1s Dec +22° 05' 41.3" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.71 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,229,964 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 198,005,179 km [23.5 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
72.4
Sol number:
155
Offline
Like button can go here
===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/15 Sunday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 155 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1
Today on Earth: 2025/04/20 Sunday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 072.4 Sol Number: 155 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038155
Solar Longitude: 071.9 Sol Number: 154 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038154
Solar Longitude: 071.5 Sol Number: 153 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038153
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due April 16, 2025 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars is 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,229,964 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -04575 <= -0191 km/hour at 12 on 04/20 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,234,539 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -03083 <= -0128 km/hour at 12 on 04/19 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,237,622 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -01592 <= -0066 km/hour at 12 on 04/18 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: PGC 23058 below path Day 0 – 0 Ahead
PGC 1665309 Day 0 – 0 below and ahead Day 1 – 2 past
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/20 198,164,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/19 196,999,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/18 195,563,000 (increasing)
#
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 155 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 155 is Sunday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/21/2025, 13:00:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 16m 34.4s Dec +21° 58' 48.1" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.72 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,223,897 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 199,414,291 km [23.7 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
72.8
Sol number:
156
Offline
Like button can go here
===
Today on Mars: 0038/06/16 Monday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 156 Business Month 6 last month of Quarter 1
Today on Earth: 2025/04/21 Monday Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars
====*====*==
To see how this calendar works, we show the standard 28 day month at the bottom of this daily report.
There are 20 months of 28 Sols and 4 months of 27 Sols at the end of the four six-month quarters.
New Years Eve is extended to align the Business Calendar for Mars with the Astronomical calendar.
Business and Astronomical both start at zero (to the nanosecond) on New Year's Day.
This calendar has been in operation for two full Mars years (36 and 37).
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 38 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 3 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 90 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 072.8 Sol Number: 156 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038156
Solar Longitude: 072.4 Sol Number: 155 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038155
Solar Longitude: 071.9 Sol Number: 154 Change in degrees is +.4 Julian date is: J0038154
#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars date as J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred in 2024 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred in 2022 at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion Earth Dates: Next: 2025/04/16 Earlier: 2023/05/30, 2021/07/12, 2019/08/25, 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152.
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per http://www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
Aphelion of Mars is due April 16, 2025 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars is 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,223,897 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -06067 <= -0253 km/hour at 12 on 04/21 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,229,964 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -04575 <= -0191 km/hour at 12 on 04/20 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 249,234,539 km [22.0 km/s] Difference is -03083 <= -0128 km/hour at 12 on 04/19 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: HIP 40565 below and just ahead on Day 0
PGC 23058 below path Day 0 – 0 Ahead Day 1 out of view
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Light travel time today is between 10 and 11 minutes. Communications delay would be 20+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/21 199,861,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/20 198,164,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/04/19 196,999,000 (increasing)
#
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun) Minimum is about 56 million kilometers
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in Year 36. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
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Sol 156 is in Month 6 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 6 extends from Sol 141 through 167. <<== There are 27 days in Month 6. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 156 is Monday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 122 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 159 of Year 38 (alignment due)
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The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. Year 38 started November 12, 2024 on Earth
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Copyright the Mars Society All Rights Reserved
Month 6 of 24 - Quarter 1 of 4 [Month 1-6] (This month has 27 Sols)
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Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 04/22/2025, 13:00:16 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 08h 18m 20.9s Dec +21° 51' 48.8" Appar J2000
Mag: 0.73 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Cancer
Sun Dist: 249,216,338 km [22.0 km/s]
Earth Dist: 200,821,997 km [23.8 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
3
Solar longitude Ls:
73.2
Sol number:
157
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