Guest guest Posted August 23, 2005 Report Share Posted August 23, 2005 Internet rumours on Mars puzzle sky watchers Kolkata, pti: The ‘e-rumours’ on a website claiming that Mars will come closest to Earth in recorded history on August 27, the very date on which a similar phenomenon was witnessed two years ago, has created confusion among avid sky watchers keenly awaiting the celestial event. However, astrophysicists said on Monday that the next close encounter between the two planets would occur on October 30 and not on August 27 and it would neither be their ‘closest’ nor rare. “I have received quite a number of e-mails and telephone calls from students, amateur astronomers and the media about the news being circulated on the net. I must clarify that the information is false and baseless,” Director of Research and Academics at the M P Birla Planetarium, Debiprosad Duari said. Mars will come close to Earth (about 69.448 million km) on October 30 and not on August 27 and it would not be as close as it was on August 27, 2003 (55.758 million km), Mr Durai said. The website also claimed that Mars will look as big as the moon in the night sky. “That also is untrue,” he said. Though Mars will be visible quite brightly across the Indian subcontinent on October 30, it will be 20 per cent less bright than that of August 27, 2003. The phenomenon of Mars coming close to Earth is a normal process that happens because of the characteristics of the orbits of the two planets that bring them close every two years and two months. Start your day with - make it your home page Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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