The Nine Planets Solar System Tour. Jodrell Bank - The Night Sky. Highlights of the Month April - Mars at Opposition.
Image NASA. Mars, lying above Spica in Virgo, reaches opposition on April 8th when its magnitude will be -1.5 and its angular diameter 15.1 arc seconds. Due to the fact that Mars, and to a lesser extend, the Earth have elliptical orbits, its distance from us at opposition can vary from ~54 to 102 million km. As a result the angular size will vary from ~13 to 25 arc seconds - a major difference. ESO. HubbleSite. ESA/Hubble. The Hubble Heritage Project.
Astronomy Picture of the Day. Discover the cosmos!
Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2016 April 15 Mercury and Crescent Moon Set Image Credit & Copyright: Miguel Claro (TWAN, Dark Sky Alqueva) Astronomy Photographer of the Year.