Every August, I start receiving email from viewers anxious to know more about the "Mars Spectacular". Most of you who have emailed me are wondering if this is true, or is it another urban legend. The email message that is circulating around offices and homes across the web claims that on August 27th Mars will be as big as the moon in the sky. Simply put, this is yet another urban legend. There is a small grain of truth to how the story got started. Mars "did" reach its closest point to earth on August 27, 2003. At that time, Mars appeared 6 times larger than it usually does. This means that instead of a "tiny" red dot in the sky, it was briefly a "small" red dot in the sky. If Mars ever did appear as large as the full moon, we would have all sorts of gravity and tidal issues. There will be a large bright object in the sky on the nights of August 27 and 28, but that will be the Full Moon.....not Mars!
The email is fascinating and "scientific" sounding in its context, but alas it is just another email that needs to be deleted instead of forwarded.
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Dear David and the Newschannel9 team... You all are great and I know that when a question arises You will find an answere. Thank you for being the number one News and Weather and Sports . Now if we can only get some rain...thank you again
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