New moon on Monday
Will Mars be as big as the Moon tonight?
A recurring online hoax circulates every August that Mars could appear as large as a full moon in the Earth’s sky, the particular date being August 27th. Sounds amazing but could it actually be possible?
The origins of the story date back to 2003 when Mars came within 56,000,000km of Earth, closest they have been in nearly 60,000 years. Multiple online articles claim that Mars can never appear as large as a full moon from Earth. Mars’ diameter appears about 1/140th the diameter of the full moon.
Mars big as the moon on August 27?https://t.co/pL8JnSq4mo
Our biggest story this week – and every August – is the double moon hoax. This hoax has circulated every August since 2003. Will Mars look as big as the moon? Of course not. Imagine how terrifying that would be! pic.twitter.com/LWiUffrjgP — EarthSky (@earthskyscience) August 25, 2018
NASA claims that it won’t be that close again until until August 28th, 2287.
Don’t let us stop the fun though. If you see something in high in the sky tonight, send us your photos!
