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Place holder for today's Calendar update
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 10/18/2025, 13:00:22 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 15h 01m 37.1s Dec -17° 25' 31.7" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.48 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Libra
Sun Dist: 227,413,870 km [24.2 km/s]
Earth Dist: 357,726,918 km [50.6 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
6
Solar longitude Ls:
156.8
Sol number:
331
Next ahead: PGC 53697 RA 15h 02m below path Day 0 - 0 ahead
mini-boomer HIP 73238 below path RA 14h 58m Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 - 1 << gone
TYC 6172-1183-1 RA 14h 56m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead Day 1 – 1 5 hours past << gone on Day 2
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===
Today on Mars: 0038/12/24 Tuesday Days of the week OFFSET 4 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 331 Business Month 12 Sixth month of Quarter 2 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2025/10/18 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). We are in Year 38
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: 5 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 150 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 156.8 Sol Number: 331 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038331
Solar Longitude: 156.2 Sol Number: 330 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038330
Solar Longitude: 155.7 Sol Number: 329 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038329
#>
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: 2027/03/04 Earlier: 2025/04/16, 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 March 04, 2027 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars was 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,413,870 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195281 <= -8137 km/hour at 12 on 10/18 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,609,151 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195090 <= -8129 km/hour at 12 on 10/17 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,804,241 km [24.1 km/s] Difference is -194936 <= -8122 km/hour at 12 on 10/16 (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 53697 RA 15h 02m below path Day 0 - 0 ahead
mini-boomer HIP 73238 below path RA 14h 58m 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 19 and 20 minutes. Communications delay would be 38+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/18 357,726,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/17 357,482,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/16 357,231,000 (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 331 is in Month 12 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 12 extends from Sol 308 through 334. <<== There are 27 days in Month 12. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 331 is Tuesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 304 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 341 of Year 38
##
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 12 of 24: This is the last month of the Second Quarter. (27 Sols)
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Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 10/19/2025, 13:00:08 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 15h 04m 25.2s Dec -17° 37' 45.0" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.48 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Libra
Sun Dist: 227,218,547 km [24.2 km/s]
Earth Dist: 357,964,714 km [50.7 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
6
Solar longitude Ls:
157.3
Sol number:
332
Next ahead: TYC 6173-158-1 15h 05m Day 0 - 0 below path and ahead about 18 hours
PGC 53697 RA 15h 02m below path Day 0 - 0 ahead
mini-boomer HIP 73238 below path RA 14h 58m Day 0 – 0 ahead Day 1 out of view
Offline
Like button can go here
===
Today on Mars: 0038/12/25 Wednesday Days of the week OFFSET 4 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 332 Business Month 12 Sixth month of Quarter 2 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2025/10/19 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). We are in Year 38
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: 5 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 150 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 157.3 Sol Number: 332 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038332
Solar Longitude: 156.8 Sol Number: 331 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038331
Solar Longitude: 156.2 Sol Number: 330 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038330
#>
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: 2027/03/04 Earlier: 2025/04/16, 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 March 04, 2027 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars was 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,218,547 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195323 <= -8138 km/hour at 12 on 10/19 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,413,870 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195281 <= -8137 km/hour at 12 on 10/18 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,609,151 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195090 <= -8129 km/hour at 12 on 10/17 (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: TYC 6173-158-1 15h 05m Day 0 - 0 below path and ahead about 18 hours
PGC 53697 RA 15h 02m below path Day 0 - 0 ahead Day 1 – 1 past 5 hours
====*====*>>>
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 19 and 20 minutes. Communications delay would be 38+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/19 357,964,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/18 357,726,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/17 357,482,000 (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 332 is in Month 12 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 12 extends from Sol 308 through 334. <<== There are 27 days in Month 12. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 332 is Wednesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 304 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 341 of Year 38
##
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
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 15h 07m 14.0s Dec -17° 49' 51.3" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.47 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Libra
Sun Dist: 227,023,060 km [24.2 km/s]
Earth Dist: 358,196,003 km [50.8 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
6
Solar longitude Ls:
157.8
Sol number:
333
Next ahead: PGC 54003 Day 0 - 0 below and ahead RA 15h 07m
TYC 6173-158-1 15h 05m Day 0 - 0 below path and ahead about 18 hours Day 1 - 1 5 hours past
Offline
Like button can go here
===
Today on Mars: 0038/12/26 Thursday Days of the week OFFSET 4 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 333 Business Month 12 Sixth month of Quarter 2 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2025/10/20 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). We are in Year 38
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: 5 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 150 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 157.8 Sol Number: 333 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038333
Solar Longitude: 157.3 Sol Number: 332 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038332
Solar Longitude: 156.8 Sol Number: 331 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038331
#>
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: 2027/03/04 Earlier: 2025/04/16, 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 March 04, 2027 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars was 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,023,060 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195487 <= -8145 km/hour at 12 on 10/20 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,218,547 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195323 <= -8138 km/hour at 12 on 10/19 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,413,870 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195281 <= -8137 km/hour at 12 on 10/18 (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 54003 Day 0 - 0 below and ahead RA 15h 07m
TYC 6173-158-1 15h 05m Day 0 - 0 below path and ahead about 18 hours Day 1 – 1 5 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 19 and 20 minutes. Communications delay would be 38+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/20 358,196,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/19 357,964,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/18 357,726,000 (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 333 is in Month 12 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 12 extends from Sol 308 through 334. <<== There are 27 days in Month 12. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 333 is Thursday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 304 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 341 of Year 38
##
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 12 of 24: This is the last month of the Second Quarter. (27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 10/21/2025, 13:00:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 15h 10m 03.6s Dec -18° 01' 48.9" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.46 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Libra
Sun Dist: 226,827,550 km [24.2 km/s]
Earth Dist: 358,420,648 km [50.9 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
6
Solar longitude Ls:
158.3
Sol number:
334
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: HIP 74232 just below path Day 0 - 0 ahead RA 15h 10m
PGC 54003 Day 0 - 0 below and ahead RA 15h 07m Day 1 - 1 10 hours past
TYC 6173-158-1 15h 05m Day 0 - 0 below path and ahead about 18 hours Day 1 – 1 5 past <gone>
====*====*>>>
Offline
Like button can go here
Today is the last sol of month 12, and the last sol of the second Quarter.
We skipped Friday this week, to keep the calendar on track for a smooth close at the end of the Martian year.
===
Today on Mars: 0038/12/28 Saturday Days of the week OFFSET 3 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 334 Business Month 12 Sixth month of Quarter 2 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2025/10/21 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). We are in Year 38
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: 5 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 150 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 158.3 Sol Number: 334 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038334
Solar Longitude: 157.8 Sol Number: 333 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038333
Solar Longitude: 157.3 Sol Number: 332 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038332
#>
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: 2027/03/04 Earlier: 2025/04/16, 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 March 04, 2027 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars was 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,827,550 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195510 <= -8146 km/hour at 12 on 10/21 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,023,060 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195487 <= -8145 km/hour at 12 on 10/20 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,218,547 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195323 <= -8138 km/hour at 12 on 10/19 (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 74232 just below path Day 0 - 0 ahead RA 15h 10m
PGC 54003 Day 0 - 0 below and ahead RA 15h 07m Day 1 – 1 10 hours 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 19 and 20 minutes. Communications delay would be 38+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/21 358,420,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/20 358,196,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/19 357,964,000 (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 334 is in Month 12 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 12 extends from Sol 308 through 334. <<== There are 27 days in Month 12. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 334 is Saturday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 304 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 341 of Year 38
##
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 12 of 24: This is the last month of the Second Quarter. (27 Sols)
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 10/22/2025, 13:00:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 15h 12m 54.3s Dec -18° 13' 38.2" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.45 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Libra
Sun Dist: 226,631,923 km [24.3 km/s]
Earth Dist: 358,638,802 km [51.0 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
6
Solar longitude Ls:
158.9
Sol number:
335
=== Mars is in Regular movement as seen from Earth.
Next ahead: Empty field - Asterism four stars in a row at RA 15h 12m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead
HIP 74232 just below path Day 0 - 0 ahead RA 15h 10m Day 1 - 1 10 hours past
PGC 54003 Day 0 - 0 below and ahead RA 15h 07m Day 1 – 1 10 hours past <gone>
====*====*>>>
Offline
Like button can go here
===
Today on Mars: 0038/13/01 Sunday Days of the week OFFSET 3 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 335 Business Month 13 First month of Quarter 3 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2025/10/22 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). We are in Year 38
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: 6 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 180 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 158.9 Sol Number: 335 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038335
Solar Longitude: 158.3 Sol Number: 334 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038334
Solar Longitude: 157.8 Sol Number: 333 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038333
#>
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: 2027/03/04 Earlier: 2025/04/16, 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 March 04, 2027 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars was 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,631,923 km [24.3 km/s] Difference is -195627 <= -8151 km/hour at 12 on 10/22 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,827,550 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195510 <= -8146 km/hour at 12 on 10/21 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 227,023,060 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195487 <= -8145 km/hour at 12 on 10/20 (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: Asterism four stars in a row at RA 15h 12m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead
HIP 74232 just below path Day 0 - 0 ahead RA 15h 10m Day 1 – 1 10 hours 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 19 and 20 minutes. Communications delay would be 38+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/22 358,638,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/21 358,420,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/20 358,196,000 (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 335 is in Month 13 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 13 extends from Sol 335 through 362. <<== There are 28 days in Month 13. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 335 is Sunday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 304 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 341 of Year 38
##
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 13 of 24: This is the first month of the 3rd Quarter and 2nd Half
Offline
Like button can go here
Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 10/23/2025, 13:00:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 15h 15m 45.5s Dec -18° 25' 19.6" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.44 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Libra
Sun Dist: 226,436,237 km [24.3 km/s]
Earth Dist: 358,850,441 km [51.1 km/s]
Next ahead: TYC 6174-389-1 RA 15h 16m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead
Asterism four stars in a row at RA 15h 12m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead Day 1- 1 9 hours past (last moments)
HIP 74232 just below path Day 0 - 0 ahead RA 15h 10m Day 1 – 1 10 hours past <gone>
====*====*>>>
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
6
Solar longitude Ls:
159.4
Sol number:
336
Offline
Like button can go here
===
Today on Mars: 0038/13/02 Monday Days of the week OFFSET 3 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 336 Business Month 13 First month of Quarter 3 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2025/10/23 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). We are in Year 38
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: 6 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 180 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 159.4 Sol Number: 336 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038336
Solar Longitude: 158.9 Sol Number: 335 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038335
Solar Longitude: 158.3 Sol Number: 334 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038334
#>
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: 2027/03/04 Earlier: 2025/04/16, 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 March 04, 2027 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars was 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,436,237 km [24.3 km/s] Difference is -195686 <= -8154 km/hour at 12 on 10/23 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,631,923 km [24.3 km/s] Difference is -195627 <= -8151 km/hour at 12 on 10/22 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,827,550 km [24.2 km/s] Difference is -195510 <= -8146 km/hour at 12 on 10/21 (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 6174-389-1 RA 15h 16m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead
Asterism four stars in a row at RA 15h 12m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead – Day 1 – 1 9 hours past (last moments)
====*====*>>>
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 19 and 20 minutes. Communications delay would be 38+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/23 358,850,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/22 358,638,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/21 358,420,000 (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 336 is in Month 13 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 13 extends from Sol 335 through 362. <<== There are 28 days in Month 13. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 336 is Monday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 304 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 341 of Year 38
##
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 13 of 24: This is the first month of the 3rd Quarter and 2nd Half
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Place holder for today's Calendar update:
[51.4797N, 0.0000E] 10/24/2025, 13:00:08 Europe/London
Object: Mars (open sky map)
RA 15h 18m 37.2s Dec -18° 36' 52.1" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.44 (Estimated: JPL) Const: Libra
Sun Dist: 226,240,491 km [24.3 km/s]
Earth Dist: 359,055,619 km [51.2 km/s]
Martian Year:
38
Martian Astronomical Month:
6
Solar longitude Ls:
159.9
Sol number:
337
Next ahead: Asterism line below path RA 15h 19m Day 0 - 0 ahead
TYC 6174-389-1 RA 15h 16m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead Day 1 - 1 7 hours past
Asterism four stars in a row at RA 15h 12m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead – Day 1 – 1 9 hours past (last moments)
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===
Today on Mars: 0038/13/03 Tuesday Days of the week OFFSET 3 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 337 Business Month 13 First month of Quarter 3 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2025/10/24 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). We are in Year 38
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: 6 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 180 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 159.9 Sol Number: 337 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038337
Solar Longitude: 159.4 Sol Number: 336 Change in degrees is +.5 Julian date is: J0038336
Solar Longitude: 158.9 Sol Number: 335 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038335
#>
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: 2027/03/04 Earlier: 2025/04/16, 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 March 04, 2027 Sol 151-152 Note velocity of Mars was 22.0 km/s nearing Aphelion (21.97 km/s)
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,240,491 km [24.3 km/s] Difference is -195746 <= -8156 km/hour at 12 on 10/24 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,436,237 km [24.3 km/s] Difference is -195686 <= -8154 km/hour at 12 on 10/23 (time 12:00) (24 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 226,631,923 km [24.3 km/s] Difference is -195627 <= -8151 km/hour at 12 on 10/22 (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: Asterism line below path Day 0 – 0 RA 15h 19m ahead
TYC 6174-389-1 RA 15h 16m Day 0 - 0 below and ahead Day 1 – 1 7 hours 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 19 and 20 minutes. Communications delay would be 38+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/24 359,055,619 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/23 358,850,000 (increasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2025/10/22 358,638,000 (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 337 is in Month 13 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 13 extends from Sol 335 through 362. <<== There are 28 days in Month 13. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 337 is Tuesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 304 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 341 of Year 38
##
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 13 of 24: This is the first month of the 3rd Quarter and 2nd Half
Offline
Like button can go here