17°C
Porth, Newquay, Cornwall. UK
Updated31/07/2026 21:45 
 


Live Updates Error: live data file has not been updated for 10 minutes.
We are currently fixing technical difficulties. Live updates will resume soon.



NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day

๐ŸŒŒ NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day

Mars at the Moon's Edge

Date: 2020-08-15

Mars at the Moon's Edge

View HD Image

Explanation:

Does the Moon ever block out Mars? Yes, the Moon occasionally moves in front of all of the Solar System's planets. Just this past Sunday, as visible from some locations in South America, a waning gibbous Moon eclipsed Mars. The featured image from Cรณrdoba, Argentina captured this occultation well, showing a familiar cratered Moon in the foreground with the bright planet Mars unusually adjacent. Within a few seconds, Mars then disappeared behind the Moon, only to reappear a few minutes later across the Moon. Today the Moon moves close to, but not in front of, Venus. Because alignments will not have changed by much, the next two times the Moon passes through this part of the sky โ€“ in early September and early October โ€“ it will also occult Mars, as seen from parts of South America. Perseid Meteor Shower: Notable images submitted to APOD