New Mars Forums

===
Today on Mars: 0038/17/25 Wednesday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth.  (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 471 Business Month 17 Fifth month of Quarter 3 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2026/03/11 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

This calendar is NOT the Darian Calendar: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 10#p238210

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 Interval in 12 interval format: 8 <<== The Astronomical interval
Check Longitude: the interval will increment when longitude reaches 240 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 241.2 Sol Number: 471  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038471
Solar Longitude: 240.6 Sol Number: 470  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038470
Solar Longitude: 240.0 Sol Number: 469  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038469
#>

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:   206,870,456 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -33026 <= -1376 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/11 (time 12:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   206,903,482 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -35142 <= -1464 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/10 (time 12:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   206,938,624 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -37270 <= -1553 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/09 (time 12:00) (24.0 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:  985121 RA 22h 36m 41.6s above path Day 0 -
Galaxy above path PGC 3093400 RA 22h 34m 05.4s – Day 0 – Day 1 Past 8 hours marker
====*====*===

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.

=== Time estimate will change below 342
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/11 347,979,777 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/10 348,198,747 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/09 348,416,981 (decreasing)
<<#

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 471 is in Month 17 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month  17 extends from Sol 447 through 474. <<== There are 28 days in Month 17. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 471 is Wednesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars.   Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 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 17 of 24: << There are 28 days in Month 17. Fifth month of Q3

===
Today on Mars: 0038/17/24 Tuesday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth.  (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 470 Business Month 17 Fifth month of Quarter 3 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2026/03/10 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

This calendar is NOT the Darian Calendar: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 10#p238210

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 Interval in 12 interval format: 8 <<== The Astronomical interval
Check Longitude: the interval will increment when longitude reaches 240 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 240.6 Sol Number: 470  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038470
Solar Longitude: 240.0 Sol Number: 469  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038469
Solar Longitude: 239.4 Sol Number: 468  Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0038468
#>

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:   206,903,482 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -35142 <= -1464 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/10 (time 12:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   206,938,624 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -37270 <= -1553 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/09 (time 12:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   206,975,894 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -37736 <= -1641 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/08 (time 12:00) (23.0 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:  Galaxy above path PGC 3093400 RA 22h 34m 05.4s – Day 0 -
====*====*===

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.

=== Time estimate will change below 342
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/10 348,198,747 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/09 348,416,981 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/08 348,634,631 (decreasing)
<<#

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 470 is in Month 17 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month  17 extends from Sol 447 through 474. <<== There are 28 days in Month 17. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 470 is Tuesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars.   Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 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 17 of 24: << There are 28 days in Month 17. Fifth month of Q3

===
Today on Mars: 0038/17/23 Monday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth.  (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 469 Business Month 17 Fifth month of Quarter 3 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2026/03/09 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

This calendar is NOT the Darian Calendar: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 10#p238210

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 Interval in 12 interval format: 8 <<== The Astronomical interval
Check Longitude: the interval will increment when longitude reaches 240 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 240.0 Sol Number: 469  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038469
Solar Longitude: 239.4 Sol Number: 468  Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0038468
Solar Longitude: 238.7 Sol Number: 467  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038467
#>

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:   206,938,624 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -37270 <= -1553 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/09 (time 12:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   206,975,894 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -37736 <= -1641 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/08 (time 12:00) (23.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   207,013,630 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -41426 <= -1726 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/07 (time 12:00) (24.0 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: Boomer below path HIP 111123 RA 22h 30m 38.8s abreast of 8 hours marker

====*====*===

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.

=== Time estimate will change below 342
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/09 348,416,981 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/08 348,634,631 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/07 348,842,826 (decreasing)
<<#

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 469 is in Month 17 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month  17 extends from Sol 447 through 474. <<== There are 28 days in Month 17. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 469 is Monday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars.   Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 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 17 of 24: << There are 28 days in Month 17. Fifth month of Q3

===
Today on Mars: 0038/17/22 Sunday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth.  (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 468 Business Month 17 Fifth month of Quarter 3 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2026/03/08 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

This calendar is NOT the Darian Calendar: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 10#p238210

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 Interval in 12 interval format: 8 <<== The Astronomical interval
Check Longitude: the interval will increment when longitude reaches 240 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 239.4 Sol Number: 468  Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0038468
Solar Longitude: 238.7 Sol Number: 467  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038467
Solar Longitude: 238.1 Sol Number: 466  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038466
#>

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:   206,975,894 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -37736 <= -1641 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/08 (time 12:00) (23.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   207,013,630 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -41426 <= -1726 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/07 (time 12:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   207,055,056 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -43532 <= -1814 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/06 (time 12:00) (24.0 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 in path TYC 5807-1362-1 RA 22h 25m 55.0s – Day 0 [missed update- Daylight savings time in US]
Two galaxies above path PGC 967816 RA 22h 21m 59.6s Day 0 – Day 1 well past 9 hours marker
====*====*===

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.

=== Time estimate will change below 342
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/08 348,634,631 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/07 348,842,826 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/06 349,059,408 (decreasing)
<<#

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 468 is in Month 17 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month  17 extends from Sol 447 through 474. <<== There are 28 days in Month 17. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 468 is Sunday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars.   Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 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 17 of 24: << There are 28 days in Month 17. Fifth month of Q3

20260308 We have shifted to Daylight Savings Time in the US, so our UTC time will return to midnight.

The waiting room will open at the usual times otherwise:

7 PM Houston, 8 PM New Hampshire, 6 PM West Coast and mid-MorningAustralia.

GW Johnson just completed a draft of a plan for a Mars lander that includes some elements discussed in the forum, including a cargo carrier that started out as one of Void's visions.

(th)

===
Today on Mars: 0038/17/21 Saturday Days of the week OFFSET 0 with Earth.  (count from Mars to Earth )
Sol 467 Business Month 17 Fifth month of Quarter 3 of Year 38
Today on Earth: 2026/03/07 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

This calendar is NOT the Darian Calendar: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 10#p238210

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 Interval in 12 interval format: 8 <<== The Astronomical interval
Check Longitude: the interval will increment when longitude reaches 240 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 238.7 Sol Number: 467  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038467
Solar Longitude: 238.1 Sol Number: 466  Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0038466
Solar Longitude: 237.5 Sol Number: 465  Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0038465
#>

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:   207,013,630 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -41426 <= -1726 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/07 (time 12:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   207,055,056 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -43532 <= -1814 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/06 (time 12:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com:   207,098,588 km [26.4 km/s] Difference is -45640 <= -1902 km/hour at 12.0 on 03/05 (time 12:00) (24.0 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 in path TYC 5807-1362-1 RA 22h 25m 55.0s – Day 0
Two galaxies above path PGC 967816 RA 22h 21m 59.6s Day 0 – Day 1 well past 9 hours marker
====*====*===

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.

=== Time estimate will change below 342
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/07 348,842,826 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/06 349,059,408 (decreasing)
Earth Distance in km: 2026/03/05 349,275,454 (decreasing)
<<#

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 467 is in Month 17 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month  17 extends from Sol 447 through 474. <<== There are 28 days in Month 17. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 467 is Saturday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars.   Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 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 17 of 24: << There are 28 days in Month 17. Fifth month of Q3

We have an announcement from the Mars Society about the latest competition...

(th)

The daily posting of the Recruiting Topic was suspended in January of 2026.

Today, to my surprise, we received an inquiry about membership.  We have replied and if anything develops the news will be reported here. Otherwise, this topic will remain quiet.

This forum is in a period of quiet and reflection.

(th)

Place holder for today's Calendar update for Friday 2026/03/06

[51.4792N, 0.0000E] 03/06/2026, 13:00:01 Europe/London
Object: Mars   (open sky map)
RA 22h 21m 48.9s Dec -11° 22' 56.9" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.13 (Estimated: JPL)  Const: Aquarius
Sun Dist: 207,055,056 km [26.5 km/s]
Earth Dist: 349,059,408 km [55.6 km/s]

Martian Year:   
38
Martian Astronomical Month:   
8
Solar longitude Ls:   
238.1
Sol number:   
466

Who is online
In total there are 170 users online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 170 guests (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 6169 on Fri Feb 06, 2026 4:17 am

Statistics
Total posts 157 • Total topics 6 • Total members 8 • Our newest member offtherock

Who is online
In total there is 1 user online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 1 guest (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 853 on Mon Oct 27, 2025 12:49 am

Statistics
Total posts 349 • Total topics 28 • Total members 8 • Our newest member kbd512

Current ID: 238411

Total number of registered users: 19,630
Total number of topics: 8,991
Total number of posts: 234,096
Newest registered user: Scarecrow2025
Registered users online: 1
Guests online: 599
Online:

Place holder for today's Calendar update: Thursday 2026/03/05

[51.4792N, 0.0000E] 03/05/2026, 13:00:03 Europe/London
Object: Mars   (open sky map)
RA 22h 18m 48.6s Dec -11° 40' 01.0" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.13 (Estimated: JPL)  Const: Aquarius
Sun Dist: 207,098,588 km [26.4 km/s]
Earth Dist: 349,275,454 km [55.6 km/s]

Who is online
In total there are 280 users online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 280 guests (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 6169 on Fri Feb 06, 2026 4:17 am

Statistics
Total posts 157 • Total topics 6 • Total members 8 • Our newest member offtherock

Who is online
In total there is 1 user online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 1 guest (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 853 on Mon Oct 27, 2025 12:49 am

Statistics
Total posts 349 • Total topics 28 • Total members 8 • Our newest member kbd512

Martian Year:   
38
Martian Astronomical Month:   
8
Solar longitude Ls:   
237.5
Sol number:   
465

Today 238402

otal number of registered users: 19,630
Total number of topics: 8,991
Total number of posts: 234,088
Newest registered user: Scarecrow2025
Registered users online: 1
Guests online: 134
Online:

Place holder for today's Calendar update for Wednesday 2026/03/04
[51.4792N, 0.0000E] 03/04/2026, 13:00:00 Europe/London
Object: Mars   (open sky map)
RA 22h 15m 48.2s Dec -11° 56' 59.0" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.14 (Estimated: JPL)  Const: Aquarius
Sun Dist: 207,144,228 km [26.4 km/s]
Earth Dist: 349,491,011 km [55.7 km/s]

Who is online
In total there are 208 users online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 208 guests (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 6169 on Fri Feb 06, 2026 4:17 am

Statistics
Total posts 157 • Total topics 6 • Total members 8 • Our newest member offtherock

Who is online
In total there is 1 user online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 1 guest (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 853 on Mon Oct 27, 2025 12:49 am

Statistics
Total posts 349 • Total topics 28 • Total members 8 • Our newest member kbd512

Martian Year:   
38
Martian Astronomical Month:   
8
Solar longitude Ls:   
236.8
Sol number:   
464

Today ID 238392
otal number of registered users: 19,630
Total number of topics: 8,990
Total number of posts: 234,078
Newest registered user: Scarecrow2025
Registered users online: 1
Guests online: 180
Online:

From image server:
DomeInCraterCroppedSmall.jpg (217.26 KiB) Viewed 126976 times << I wonder how many of these were humans?

Place holder for today's Calendar update for Tuesday 2026/03/03

[51.4792N, 0.0000E] 03/03/2026, 13:00:46 Europe/London
Object: Mars   (open sky map)
RA 22h 12m 48.0s Dec -12° 13' 49.1" Appar J2000
Mag: 1.11 (Estimated: JPL)  Const: Aquarius
Sun Dist: 207,191,935 km [26.4 km/s]
Earth Dist: 349,705,956 km [55.7 km/s]

Who is online
In total there are 177 users online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 177 guests (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 6169 on Fri Feb 06, 2026 4:17 am

Who is online
In total there is 1 user online :: 0 registered, 0 hidden and 1 guest (based on users active over the past 5 minutes)
Most users ever online was 853 on Mon Oct 27, 2025 12:49 am

Martian Year:   
38
Martian Astronomical Month:   
8
Solar longitude Ls:   
236.2
Sol number:   
463

otal number of registered users: 19,630
Total number of topics: 8,990
Total number of posts: 234,063
Newest registered user: Scarecrow2025
Registered users online: 1
Guests online: 174
Online: