MARS will be AS BIG AS THE FULL MOON!!!!!

[GneissGuy]

Well, not really, but it's making the rounds of the internet again.

I'm tired of seeing this, so I thought I'd post this here.

An e-mail is circulating talking about how Mars will be really bright this year.

DON'T FORWARD IT. IT'S WRONG!!!

1) This happened in 2003. Nothing special happens in 2010.

2) Mars got bright in 2003, but it was only 20% or so brighter than it gets every two years or so.

It was still just a dot in the sky, but it was the brightest dot in the sky and it was red.

Someone noted that "in a 57 power telescope, it's as big as the moon viewed with the naked eye." Well, duhh... The year before, the same thing was true with a 100 power telescope. Then some people quoted it and left out or deemphasized the telescope part.

Me, I'm waiting to see what kind of astronomical events we see in December 2012 when the world comes to an end.

[ThatHarleyGuy]

GG, I recently acquired an iPad and found a great Astronomy app, called Sky Walker. Among it's various features, it will use the iPad's internal compass, allowing you to face the ipad to any portion of the sky as if it were a piece of glass to view through. It will then source and define star configurations in that view. As you pan the iPad around or overhead, it provides a constantly changing overlay of what you are looking at.

[runswithscissors]

Originally Posted by GneissGuy

Me, I'm waiting to see what kind of astronomical events we see in December 2012 when the world comes to an end.

On that day, I am planning to be in my recliner with a cold cerveza or two in my backyard staring up at the night sky.......

[Guest092810]

Harley Guy, I have the iPad, and SkyWalker is amazing. I've wasted hours.

If you want to check out another amazing planetary iPad app, download Solar Walk. Beautiful graphics, and just a lot of fun.

[GneissGuy]

Stellarium is a nice freeware star chart program.

[rrrabbit]

Originally Posted by runswithscissors

On that day, I am planning to be in my recliner with a cold cerveza or two in my backyard staring up at the night sky.......

Add a redhead, a burnette, a blonde and a blue pill to that order.

[Amrita Lover]

If I am not mistaken, with one of those apps you can point your device towards the ground and see what the other side of the earth is seeing overhead as well. Pretty cool!

[PeAcH]

Originally Posted by Amrita Lover

If I am not mistaken, with one of those apps you can point your device towards the ground and see what the other side of the earth is seeing overhead as well. Pretty cool!

It is true! The Google Star Map is awesome. I have it on my Droid.

I'm always using it.. hehe.