Mon Oct 21 11:40:42 UTC 2024: Here are the important points from the news article:
– The moon will have a close pass of Mars in the constellation Gemini this week.
– The event occurs as the moon transitions from a waning gibbous to a waning crescent phase, being 21.8 days old and 53.4% illuminated.
– Mars will appear as a bright orange-red, approximately twice as bright as the star Pollux, which is slightly more orange than Castor.
– Mars is currently around 160 million kilometers from Earth and is brightening as Earth gets closer to it.
– The red planet will shine even more brightly by the end of the year, with its closest approach to Earth scheduled for January 2025.
– The conjunction will be visible from the southern hemisphere in the early morning, low in the southeastern sky.
First Piper 