Sky's Up July - September 2018 | Page 2

S ky ’ s
U p
inside the issue
contents
Mars attacks!
Get your telescopes
ready for a big show
— Page 10
V ol . 09 — J uly - S eptember 2018
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o o o
Sky’s Up digital magazine is made
possible through a generous contribution
from Explore Scientific.
10 Questions
Extended simulation gives
engineer insight into challenges
of crewed mission to Mars
— Page 12
Mars musings
The Red Planet has
given humanity lots to
think about
— Page 26
COURTESY OF David Crisp and the Hubble Telescope’s WFPC2 Science Team (JPL/Caltech)
Alien landscapes
These images of Mars were taken by the Hubble Telescopes Wide Field Planetary Camera-2 on March 10, 1997, just before Mars opposition, when the
red planet made one of its closest to the Earth (about 60 million miles or 100 million km). The pictures were taken during three HST orbits that were
separated by about six hours. This timing was chosen so that Mars, with its 24-hour 39-minute day, would rotate about 90 degrees between orbits.
This imaging sequence therefore covers most of the Martian surface.
Mars orbiter’s views are
truly out of this world
— Page 36
Constellation Corner.............Pg. 6
What’s Up in the Sky.............Pg. 7
SETI: Looking for ET...............Pg. 8
The STEM Zone....................Pg. 42
Meet the Moon...................Pg. 50
The Art of Astronomy..........Pg. 56
Lunar Calendar....................Pg. 60
Seasonal Sky Calendars.......Pg. 61
on the cover
Released June 8, 1998: About 1,000 Viking Orbiter red- and violet-filter images have been
processed to provide global color coverage of Mars at a scale of 1 km/pixel. The final
mosaic has been reprojected into several map projections. The orthographic view shown
here is most like the view seen by a distant observer looking through a telescope. The color
balance selected for these images was designed to be close to natural color for the bright
reddish regions such as Tharsis and Arabia, but the data have been “stretched” such that
the relatively dark regions appear darker and less reddish that their natural appearance.
COURTESY OF NASA/JPL-Caltech/USGS
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Sky ’ s
Up
Seeing Red
As July comes to a close, the Red Planet will cozy up
to our own Pale Blue Dot to reign in the night sky.
Mars reaches opposition on July 27, putting it and
the Sun on directly opposite sides of the Earth.
Four days later, it will makes its closest approach to
Earth since 2003. These circumstances mean — for
the next few months— Mars will outshine Jupiter,
which is usually the third brightest object in the
evening sky. It also means it will be an ideal time to
try your hand at viewing the Red Planet.
In honor of the big year Mars is having, we
have devoted most of this issue to our intriguing
neighbor.
Inside, you will find columns exploring
humanity’s fascination with Mars and our efforts
to understand it; observing activities and advice
Sky ’ s
Up
Mars fever is heating
up as opposition nears
to maximize your opposition experience; and a
gallery of some of the stunning images the Mars
Reconnaissance Orbiter has been collecting since
its arrival in 2006.
In addition, our recurring 10 Questions feature
spotlights Ansley Barnard, who recently wrapped
up an eight-month stint as the engineering officer
for Mission V of HI-SEAS — an analog project that
will likely play a crucial role in eventually launching
a crewed mission to Mars.
Mars has dominated this issue just like it will
dominate the night sky as it makes its move in late
July. We encourage you to learn more about the
Red Planet and take some time to observe it in all
of its burnt-orange glory.
Clear skies!
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