Mars Will Be Visible To The Naked Eye This Month

Mars will be in its closest position to Earth in 15 years later this month of July.

On July 31, the Red Planet will reach its closest approach to our planet due to opposition, or the phenomenon in which both Mars and Earth pass on the same side of the sun.

The phenomenon typically happens once every two years or so because Mars is farther away from the sun than Earth. So Mars makes one round trip around the sun, while Earth does two rotations.

The opposition that is happening this month is special because Mars will be significantly closer to Earth. It will be 35.8 million miles away from Earth. Such a phenomenon is referred to as perihelic opposition, according to The Sun.

The perihelic opposition usually happens every 15 to 17 years. The last time this happened was in 2003, when Mars passed within 34.6 million miles of Earth. The next time the Red Planet will be this close to Earth again is in 2035, according to the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

So what can everyone expect when the phenomenon happens later this month? Mars will shine 10 times brighter than the usual, making it easy for everyone to see it with their eyes. Of course, it’s going to be a lot better if you have binoculars and telescopes to use when the time comes.

“Mars will easily be visible to the naked eye. In fact, you will be hard pressed to miss it. It will look like a glowing orange beacon of light ... It'll be much brighter than any star, brighter than Jupiter, nearly as bright as Venus,” Cincinnati Observatory astronomer Dean Regas said.

The opposition will happen on July 27, but Mars will be in its closest position to Earth on July 31. The Red Planet will then remain visible for weeks this summer, but it will become smaller and smaller as it moves away from our planet, as per the Irish Examiner.