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Tehachapi Sky Watch: Mars is Planet of the Year
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Posted by editor Mon Dec 17, 2007 10:52:23 PST
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0 responses 0 comments If one can off-handedly ignore the fact that the happenings of all known life occurred on or quite near Terra Firma, the winner Planet of the Year Award would easily go to Mars. Though we are no nearer to landing a person on Mars 35 years after the end of Project Apollo (sneer!), the Martian frontier was been pushed back quite a number of baby steps.

The European Mars Express mission with its pioneering “sounding radar” has determined that there is enough frozen water at the Martian South Pole to cover the entire planet in water eleven meters deep.

The Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity are still hanging in there, completing the third year of their three month mission. Though needing a couple days of solar battery charging to rove for an hour, they are still making discoveries. They have weathered a planet-wide dust storm that had them paralyzed, blotting out the life-giving sun and coving their solar panels with dust. They are entering their third Martian winter, which, due to the low sun angle and cold temperatures, will paralyze them for a good while longer. But we still have a heartbeat and good vision.

NASA's Mars Odyssey Mission has been surveying Mars for 2242 days and continues to be the primary communications relay with the rovers.

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has returned photos suggesting that water has been flowing on Mars since Viking landed in 1976. (Actually, that discovery was announced last December.)

NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is headed for Mars. When it lands on the Martian ice cap in May, it will be looking for signs of life, picking up where Viking left off.

Also, the Russians and Chinese have announced plans to cooperate on a Martian lander mission.

To close out the year, Mars reaches its closest point of approach and will be at its brightest for the year on Tuesday, the eighteenth, and reaches opposition (directly opposite the sun and fully illuminated) the following week on Christmas Eve. It has taken center stage in the evening sky as Venus has move to the morning sky and Jupiter is now pretty much on the other side of the sun. Though not nearly as bright, it's still the brightest object in the sky other than the moon. Mars' ruddy color makes it stand out from the typical whitish stars. So, get out your telescopes, or find someone who has one, because Mars won't be this close again for another nine years.

The coming year should be no less exciting. When Phoenix lands in May, will it find evidence of life? Can the little rovers possibly make it through yet another year? Will Marvin Martian please dust off their solar panels? Will our next president put NASA's manned-space program back on a sane course toward Mars? Stay tuned!

Manned Space Watch
The launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis has been scrubbed until at least January second due to faulty fuel-level sensors in the external fuel tank. A failure of these sensors could cause a premature shutdown of the main engines after takeoff, requiring an emergency landing and an expensive abortion of the mission. I think it's a real tribute to the program that such an aborted takeoff has never happened - though the last crew of Challenger surely would have liked to have had the option.

NASA has not announced any intention of returning Atlantis to the hanger, though teams are still evaluating the problem and have yet to announce a mitigation plan.

Night Sky Watch
With the moon reaching first quarter on Monday, Dec. 17, the evening sky will be bright.

Comet 17P/Holmes is still fading fast.  Binoculars are now needed to find it.
Mars is in the east in the evening.

Venus is still eye catching in the eastern morning sky.

The Winter Solstice occurs on Friday, Dec. 21, at 11:08 PM, marking the beginning of winter. (You mean it's really still fall!? With the cold mornings we've been having, you could have fooled me! My telescope's been frosting up before I could use it.)

Sunrise/Sunset (PST)
6:58 AM/4:45 PM

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