Martian Calendar Based on Formula by RobertDyck

[tahanson43206]

===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/11 Wednesday Days of the week offset 6 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/03/31))

Today on Earth: 2024/05/07 Tuesday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=

Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim ... _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion

Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 250.1 Sol Number: 485 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037485
Solar Longitude: 249.5 Sol Number: 484 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037484
Solar Longitude: 248.8 Sol Number: 483 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037483
<<#

Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.

Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (estimated) 2024/05/08
Perihelion occurred at Ls 253 on Sol 485 Earth Date 2020/08/03 Earlier: 2018/09/16, 2016/10/29
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)

Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.

Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.

===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,671,127 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -03157 <= -0132 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/07 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,674,284 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -05315 <= -0221 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/06 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,679,599 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -07473 <= -0311 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/05 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*

Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.

=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up: Star above path TYC 3-444-1 RA 00h 21m 35.0s – Day 0 -
TYC 2-781-1 RA 00h 19m 08.6s – Day 0 – Day 1 Above 9 hours past marker – last day for 781
====*====*>>>

Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.

Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border

Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.

===
Earth Distance 2024/05/07 291,993,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/06 292,568,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/05 293,108,000 (decreasing)
#>

Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396

Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip

In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.

Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.

This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.

This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/

===
Sol 485 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257
Sol 485 is Wednesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 May 7th
##

The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.

Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.

For current weather on Mars see:

***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/

Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases

https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ ... ope=Latest

All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries

Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257

Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion

[tahanson43206]

===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/10 Tuesday Days of the week offset 6 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/03/31))

Today on Earth: 2024/05/06 Monday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=

Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim ... _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion

Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 249.5 Sol Number: 484 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037484
Solar Longitude: 248.8 Sol Number: 483 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037483
Solar Longitude: 248.2 Sol Number: 482 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037482
<<#

Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.

Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (estimated) 2024/05/08
Perihelion occurred at Ls 253 on Sol 485 Earth Date 2020/08/03 Earlier: 2018/09/16, 2016/10/29
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)

Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.

Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.

===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,674,284 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -05315 <= -0221 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/06 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,679,599 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -07473 <= -0311 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/05 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,687,072 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -09640 <= -0402 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/04 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*

Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.

=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up: Star above path well ahead of 9 hours marker: TYC 2-781-1 RA 00h 19m 08.6s – Day 0 -
Star at RA 00h 15m 59.1s directly in path on Day 0 – Day 1 in lower right corner … last moments for this unlabelled star
====*====*>>>

Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.

Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border

Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.

===
Earth Distance 2024/05/06 292,568,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/05 293,108,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/04 293,691,000 (decreasing)
#>

Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396

Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip

In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.

Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.

This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.

This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/

===
Sol 484 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257
Sol 484 is Tuesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 May 7th
##

The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.

Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.

For current weather on Mars see:

***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/

Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases

https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ ... ope=Latest

All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries

Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257

Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion

[tahanson43206]

206,679,599 km [26.5 km/s]
Place holder for today's Calendar update

[tahanson43206]

===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/08 Sunday Days of the week offset 6 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/03/31))

Today on Earth: 2024/05/04 Saturday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=

Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim ... _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion

Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 248.2 Sol Number: 482 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037482
Solar Longitude: 247.6 Sol Number: 481 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037481
Solar Longitude: 246.9 Sol Number: 480 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037480
<<#

Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.

Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (estimated) 2024/05/08
Perihelion occurred at Ls 253 on Sol 485 Earth Date 2020/08/03 Earlier: 2018/09/16, 2016/10/29
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)

Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.

Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.

===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,687,072 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -09640 <= -0402 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/04 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,696,712 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -11797 <= -0492 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/03 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,708,509 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -13949 <= -0581 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/02 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*

Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.

=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up (lots of galaxies in the view today) Galaxy PGC 1156037 just below path at far upper left RA 00h 13m 33.8s – Day 0 -
PGC 138134 RA 00h 10m 10.9s – Day 0 – Day 1 in far lower right corner of view … last moments for 134
====*====*>>>

Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.

Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border

Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.

===
Earth Distance 2024/05/04 293,691,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/03 294,234,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/02 294,785,000 (decreasing)
#>

Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396

Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip

In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.

Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.

This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.

This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/

===
Sol 482 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257
Sol 482 is Sunday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 May 7th
##

The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.

Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.

For current weather on Mars see:

***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/

Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases

https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ ... ope=Latest

All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries

Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257

Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion

[tahanson43206]

206,696,712 km [26.5 km/s]

Place holder for today's Calendar update

[tahanson43206]

===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/06 Friday Days of the week offset 6 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/03/31))

Today on Earth: 2024/05/02 Thursday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=

Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim ... _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion

Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 246.9 Sol Number: 480 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037480
Solar Longitude: 246.3 Sol Number: 479 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037479
Solar Longitude: 245.7 Sol Number: 478 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037478
<<#

Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.

Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (estimated) 2024/05/08
Perihelion occurred at Ls 253 on Sol 485 Earth Date 2020/08/03 Earlier: 2018/09/16, 2016/10/29
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)

Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.

Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.

===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,708,509 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -13949 <= -0581 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/02 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,722,458 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -16114 <= -0671 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/01 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,738,572 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -18262 <= -0761 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/30 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*

Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.

=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up: Galaxy below path at far left: PGC 1140626 RA 00h 07m 56.2s – Day 0
Note: Neptune and Saturn are below Mars
TYC 4663-378-1 RA 00h 05m 30.3s – Day 0 – Day 1 – Midway between 4.5 and 9 hour markers – last day for 378
====*====*>>>

Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.

Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border

Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.

===
Earth Distance 2024/05/02 294,785,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/01 295,374,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/04/30 295,941,000 (decreasing)
#>

Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396

Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip

In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.

Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.

This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.

This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/

===
Sol 480 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257
Sol 480 is Friday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 May 7th
##

The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.

Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.

For current weather on Mars see:

***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/

Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases

https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ ... ope=Latest

All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries

Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257

Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion

[tahanson43206]

===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/05 Thursday Days of the week offset 6 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/03/31))

Today on Earth: 2024/05/01 Wednesday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=

Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim ... _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion

Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 246.3 Sol Number: 479 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037479
Solar Longitude: 245.7 Sol Number: 478 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037478
Solar Longitude: 245.0 Sol Number: 477 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037477
<<#

Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.

Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (estimated) 2024/05/08
Perihelion occurred at Ls 253 on Sol 485 Earth Date 2020/08/03 Earlier: 2018/09/16, 2016/10/29
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)

Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.

Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.

===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,722,458 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -16114 <= -0671 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/01 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,738,572 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -18262 <= -0761 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/30 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,756,834 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -20413 <= -0851 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/29 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*

Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.

=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up: Star in path at far left TYC 4663-378-1 RA 00h 05m 30.3s – Day 0 -
PGC 1127136 RA 00h 02m 2.7s – Day 0 – Day 1 In lower right corner above 9 hour marker … last moments for 136
====*====*>>>

Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.

Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border

Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.

===
Earth Distance 2024/05/01 295,374,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/04/30 295,941,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/04/29 296,490,000 (decreasing)
#>

Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396

Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip

In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.

Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.

This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.

This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/

===
Sol 479 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257
Sol 479 is Thursday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 May 7th
##

The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.

Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.

For current weather on Mars see:

***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/

Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases

https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ ... ope=Latest

All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries

Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257

Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion

[tahanson43206]

===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/04 Wednesday Days of the week offset 6 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/03/31))

Today on Earth: 2024/04/30 Tuesday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=

Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim ... _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion

Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 245.7 Sol Number: 478 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037478
Solar Longitude: 245.0 Sol Number: 477 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037477
Solar Longitude: 244.4 Sol Number: 476 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037476
<<#

Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.

Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (estimated) 2024/05/08
Perihelion occurred at Ls 253 on Sol 485 Earth Date 2020/08/03 Earlier: 2018/09/16, 2016/10/29
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)

Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.

Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.

===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,738,572 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -18262 <= -0761 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/30 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,756,834 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -20413 <= -0851 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/29 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,777,247 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -22556 <= -0940 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/28 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*

Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.

=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up: Galaxy above path in upper left corner: PGC 1127136 RA 00h 02m 2.7s – Day 0 -
TYC 5253-547-1 RA 23h 59m 38.2s – Day 0 – Day 1 – At lower right of view – last day for 547
====*====*>>>

Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.

Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border

Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.

===
Earth Distance 2024/04/29 295,941,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/04/29 296,490,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/04/28 297,081,000 (decreasing)
#>

Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396

Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip

In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.

Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.

This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.

This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/

===
Sol 478 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257
Sol 478 is Wednesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 May 7th
##

The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.

Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.

For current weather on Mars see:

***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/

Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases

https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ ... ope=Latest

All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries

Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257

Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion

[tahanson43206]

206,756,834 km [26.5 km/s]

Place holder for today's Calendar update

[tahanson43206]

===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/02 Monday Days of the week offset 6 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/03/31))

Today on Earth: 2024/04/28 Sunday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=

Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim ... _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion

Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees

===
Solar Longitude: 244.4 Sol Number: 476 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037476
Solar Longitude: 243.8 Sol Number: 475 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037475
Solar Longitude: 243.1 Sol Number: 474 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037474
<<#

Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.

Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (estimated) 2024/05/08
Perihelion occurred at Ls 253 on Sol 485 Earth Date 2020/08/03 Earlier: 2018/09/16, 2016/10/29
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)

Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.

Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.

===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,777,247 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -22556 <= -0940 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/28 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,799,803 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -24702 <= -1029 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/27 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,824,505 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -26811 <= -1117 km/hour at 08.0 on 04/26 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*

Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.

=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up: Star just below path at far left: TYC 5253-976-1 RA 23h 56m 23.8s – Day 0 -
Note mini-boomer just past Mars: HIP 117881
PGC 1106402 RA 23h 53m 6.9s – Day 0 – Day 1 far above 9 hours past marker – last minutes for 402
====*====*>>>

Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.

Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border

Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.

===
Earth Distance 2024/04/28 297,081,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/04/27 297,622,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/04/26 298,189,000 (decreasing)
#>

Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396

Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip

In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.

Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.

This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.

This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/

===
Sol 476 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257
Sol 476 is Monday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 449 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 486 May 7th
##

The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.

Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.

For current weather on Mars see:

***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/

Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases

https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ ... ope=Latest

All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries

Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php ... 57#p154257

Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion