Mom, why is the second moon red?

Evelond Formos · Post by **Evelond Formos** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 9:59 am

This month Mars will be coming closer to earth than it ever has in recorded history! At night it will be so close it will look like a red moon. It will be the brightest object in the sky (besides the moon of course). On either August 16, 17, 27, or 26 mars will look like a full red moon.

Share this with everyone you know, for it won't happen again for an estimated 60,000 years! Share this, for nobody alive today will ever see this again!

Wormez · Post by **Wormez** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 1:39 pm

Yeh cool, get somewhere nice grab a beer. Sorted

Muletang · Post by **Muletang** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 2:07 pm

nice, wonder what affects it will have on tides and things

Boon · Post by **Boon** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 5:40 pm

Places his finger tips to his forehead, closes his eyes and hums

Hmmm...I predict....ummmm...that....ummm.....the UK will be.....ummm....covered in clouds during those nights.....ummmmm.

Heh.

Every time there is some kind of astronomical occurrence, it always happens.

But still I'll have my telescope ready, just in case.

Muletang · Post by **Muletang** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:34 pm

Heh, too true mate, at the last solar eclipse it nearly got ruined by cloud, but at the last minute there was a break in the cover and we got to see it happen.
Here I am in the depths of winter and its like a really good summer back in Blighty.

Auckland
MAX: 15°C MIN: 9°C
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London, United Kingdom
Fair
16°C

Mad Season · Post by **Mad Season** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:35 pm

Muletang wrote:nice, wonder what affects it will have on tides and things

*Does some research and some rough calcs*

The influence of Mars should be about a million times less than that of the moon. By contrast, the influence of the Sun on tides is about 2.5 times less than that of the moon. (Per the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)

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Very roughly, Mars will appear to be about 90 times smaller than an average full moon.

Rowan · Post by **Rowan** » Wed Aug 10, 2005 5:02 am

*Reaches for the tinfoil*

This means the Space Alien Mind Control Rays will be that much stronger!

Starkwolf · Post by **Starkwolf** » Wed Aug 10, 2005 7:45 am

This is actually a rather huge hoax that has been floating around the internet since 2003. Yes Mars will be grand this Aug-Oct. It will not however be the size of the moon. If it was, well, we would all be dead since Mars would be so close it would majorly screw the tides....
Anyway here is the hoax....

The Mars Hoax Roaming the Internet

"The Red Planet is about to be spectacular!

"This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

"The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide.

"Mars will look as large as the full moon. Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10 p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m. By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30 a.m.

"That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month.

Share this with your children and grandchildren. NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN"

And here is the truth...

In 2005 Mars will be closest to Earth on October 30 (not August 27). In addition, all information on size, distance, brightness, times, etc., are left over from the close approach in 2003. This material is wrong for the 2005 close approach.

And the most important quote...

Consequently, misguided people are propagating the myth that Mars will appear as large as the Moon!

Note: In October/November of 2005, for Mars to appear as large as the Moon does without a telescope, Mars would need to move about 90 times closer to Earth. This distance is about twice the Moon's distance from Earth (about 1/2 million mi or 800,000 km). This would be bad news for us since tide raising forces on Earth and gravitational effects on the Earth's orbit would substantially increase! At the 2005 close approach, however, Mars remains no closer than about 180 times the distance of the Moon.

And finally the link for further info...
http://www.floridastars.org/marshoax.html

Apparently this all started with a few people misreading a Astronomy e-mail and e-mailing everyone...we all know how the internet can be

Hope this clears things up.

whiteguyinblues · Post by **whiteguyinblues** » Wed Aug 10, 2005 8:53 am

Why do you have to ruin everything starkwolf? Sheesh!

Don't listen to him. Mars is going to be bigger than the moon, but its going to be cloudy the entire month of August.

Evelond Formos · Post by **Evelond Formos** » Wed Aug 10, 2005 7:04 pm

Starkwolf wrote:
The Mars Hoax Roaming the Internet

"The Red Planet is about to be spectacular!

"This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

"The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide.

"Mars will look as large as the full moon. Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10 p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m. By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30 a.m.

"That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month.

Share this with your children and grandchildren. NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN"

Whoa! My science teacher came across this same article on the internet!

She printed it and handed it out to all the students in the class. 'Tis a shame I don't know how to contact them to tell them.

Wormez · Post by **Wormez** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 4:15 am

Evelond Formos wrote:Whoa! My science teacher came across this same article on the internet! She printed it and handed it out to all the students in the class.

Jesus christ

They let you in school?!?!

Evelond Formos · Post by **Evelond Formos** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 7:18 am

Wormez wrote:
Evelond Formos wrote:Whoa! My science teacher came across this same article on the internet! She printed it and handed it out to all the students in the class.
Jesus christ They let you in school?!?!

Heh . . . I'm not this crazy in real life . . . actually I'm pretty quiet and get annoyed by kids who act really stupid and shout things like

"Whaaaaaaa! Whaaaaaaaaaaaa! Oriobishi gaga gooshka!"

while running down the stairs.
------

Yes, they let me go to school. And my lowest grade this marking period was . . . hmm I think . . . an A-. But that was in the subject I like the least: Math.

All other grades were A or higher.
___________

And just to brag, I did 99% better than most other 5th graders in the US on the DRP, or whatever that national reading test is.

Bragging feels good

Depheant · Post by **Depheant** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 7:41 am

I bet you get beat up.

Jimmy · Post by **Jimmy** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 7:52 am

Depheant wrote:I bet you get beat up.

Jealousy is a stinky cologne my friend

Wormez · Post by **Wormez** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 8:01 am

Depheant wrote:I bet you get beat up.

From what I hear about schools in america, the 'popularity' thing... like groups of 'dudes idiots and geeks' ... that type of thing i wouldnt be suprised.

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Mom, why is the second moon red?

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Mom, why is the second moon red?