Att. Skywatchers...Mars this month

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I saw Jupiter through the smoke. That's about it. Mars was still too near to the horizon at the time.
 
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Mars, Jupiter and Saturn all look great through my spotting scope.
 
Don't neglect binoculars. Good ones show star and planet colors well. And great Moon detail.

Buy a copy of, Astronomy or, Sky & Telescope and look for monthly objects in the centerfold.
 
I've been watching it lately.;)

Just took a bad picture of it(got no fancy photograph apparatus, nor talent either:o).

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It is bright in the eastern sky right now and there is no mistaking the red planet.
I believe it is visible through this month and much of Oct.

Mars has been visible in the morning sky since September of 2019 and will be visible in the evening sky well into 2021. What is different is that Mars reaches opposition in October, meaning that it is directly opposite the Sun as seen from the Earth. Best viewing would be around local midnight (1:00am DST) when Mars is near the meridian of the sky, i.e. the north-south line.

The practical aspect of this is that it means that Mars is at its closest approach to Earth for this apparition. In addition the orbit of Mars is slightly eccentric and it just so happens that this will be a closer approach than average, so Mars will appear larger and brighter than an average opposition. As an added bonus the plane of the ecliptic will be high in the sky so Mars will be high above the southern horizon, minimizing the amount of air that we have to look through.

I just read a news story this afternoon that was headlined "How To See Uranus Without a Telescope."

Yeah, I laughed.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0czFnIvKOJY[/ame]
 
That looks like about.....

I've been watching it lately.;)

Just took a bad picture of it(got no fancy photograph apparatus, nor talent either:o).

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...one hundred photographs I took at that so called 'comet' earlier. Ok, it's not the comets fault that the skies have sucked around here since the beginning of the year.:(
 
A LONG time ago.....

I just read a news story this afternoon that was headlined "How To See Uranus Without a Telescope."

Yeah, I laughed.

...with much better skies and much better eyes I could see it...barely. And a telescope hardly helped. It's kind of bluey-greenie and I was glad to add it to my catalog of successes. Sure beats no-shows.
 
...one hundred photographs I took at that so called 'comet' earlier. Ok, it's not the comets fault that the skies have sucked around here since the beginning of the year.:(

I watched the comet. Took no photos though.;)
 
Is that somebody's living room window?!

If you mean in my picture. The lighted rectangle is probably just that. Mars is the little speck of light about middle of the picture.

Yeah. I'm a lousy photographer.:rolleyes:
 
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