OK, AnswerFolks....

[TomInTib]

I have always been in awe of how any question asked, with any answer known to Man/Woman, could be answered in the blink of an eye by our intrepid DUers.

As a matter of fact, musette_sf and I were discussing this over a glass (or 2 or 3 or so) of wine just last week.

So when is the prime viewing time for the Mars event later tonight?

Thanks in advance.

Tom

[Canuckistanian]

1. There's no critical time period

Just between now and the end of October. Read this:

The red planet, already intense, is about to get much brighter
Date: 10/5/05

Ready to be amazed?

Step outside tonight around midnight and look east. About halfway up the sky you'll see the planet Mars. It looks like an intense red star, the brightest light in the midnight sky other than the Moon.

Here's the amazing part: Between now and the end of October, Mars, already so bright, will double in brightness again. Imagine that.

http://space.about.com/od/astronomynews/a/marsbrightens.htm

[1620rock]

2. There is no Mars event. This hoax has been around for three years.

[TomInTib]

4. I have read where this is the real deal.

I'm going for it.

After all, I watched the lunar eclipse, the meteor shower (live in clear air in the hilss over SF Bay) the next weekend, and held a wild mourning dove in my hands the next morning.

I'm going for it.

[Canuckistanian]

5. Wild mourning doves?

You can lasso those things with a shoelace.

[TomInTib]

7. We have coyotes. nt

[Blue-Jay]

16. Hold one of those in your hands.

That would be pretty impressive.

[TomInTib]

17. Well, you were right.

And I got out of bed at 3AM just to find out.

Damn

[Az]

3. Between midnight and 6am

Good viewing. If you have a telescope you should be able to see the polar ice caps.

[madinmaryland]

6. Did you call your Congresscritter?

RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!1!!

:hi:

[Whoa_Nelly]

8. All Mars viewing info for the year

October 2007: Mars brightens and appears larger in diameter this month, as it approaches its December 24, 2007 opposition. It is now possible to see some features on the planet through telescopes. It rises in the mid-evening. On October 4, Mars passes by a beautiful open cluster, M-35, near the foot of the constellation Gemini. You can point out the pumpkin-colored planet to trick-or-treaters on Halloween.
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/scitech/display.cfm?ST_ID=1829

[Whoa_Nelly]

9. Here's the whole REAL story--Mars WILL be brighter

http://www.space.com/spacewatch/070928_ns_mars_watch.html

Mars is coming!

You've probably heard that line before – no doubt fairly recently, thanks to a bogus e-mail that unfortunately received wide circulation on the Internet this summer with promises of Mars being as big as the full moon.

But this fact is absolutely true: Mars, the only planet whose surface we can see in any detail from the Earth, is now moving toward the best viewing position it will provide to us until the year 2014. Planet watchers have already begun readying their telescopes.

If you haven't seen it, it will be well worth looking for the red planet next week, even though you'll have to wait until after midnight to see it well.

Mars is currently midway between the zodiacal constellations of Taurus, the Bull and Gemini, the Twins and during this week it will rise shortly before 11 p.m. local daylight time. There is certainly no mistaking it once it comes up over the east-northeast horizon. Presently shining like a pumpkin-hued, zero magnitude star, Mars is currently tied for fifth place (with Vega) among the 21 brightest stars.

But as it continues to approach our Earth in the coming weeks and months, Mars will only be getting brighter: it will surpass Sirius, the brightest star in the sky by Dec. 9 and during the latter half of December it will even almost match Jupiter in brilliance.

Late next Wednesday night (or more precisely, early on Thursday morning), Mars will hover about 7-degrees above and to the right of the last quarter moon as they rise above the east-northeast horizon (your clenched fist held at arm's length is roughly 10-degrees in width). As you will see for yourself, the so-called "Red Planet" actually will appear closer to a yellow-orange tint – the same color of a dry desert under a high sun.



...more at link...

[cherokeeprogressive]

10. Mildly Related Question: If given the chance, would you go meet the ExtraTerrestrials?

Say someone called you in the middle of the night:

RING! You pick up the phone sleepily...

Them: SHHHH
You: What?
Them: SHHH!! (whisper) They're coming. We know. They want to contact someone who is absolutely NOBODY. We've chosen you. If you say yes, we'll come get you.
You: Yes. (instant knock on your door)

Would you go, if it meant giving up all earthly possessions, relationships, and any chance of returning to Earth before your loved ones have long since turned to dust...?

Qualification: Someone has to go, or they'll simply blow up the planet with photon torpedoes to make way for a new Vogon Space Overpass.

[TomInTib]

11. Hell, yes.

I would go without any hesitation.

After all, my mantra has always been...

"Sure, why not?"

[cherokeeprogressive]

13. One of my hero's, Alan Shepard, after seeing numerous rockets blow up on the pad...

said when he was offered the chance to be the first American into space said: "I'll give it a shot."

The agency that was to become NASA called it an "all up test". Meaning, THEY weren't sure it would work.

HERO: Alan Shepard. Someone who put his life on the line in an effort to further the exploration of space.

GRHS. (God Rest His Soul)

How many Americans know that he was the first into space from this continent, and not John Glenn? Bad.....

[daninthemoon]

12. What a coincidence. They just brought me back.

[Lucinda]

14. Nope.

I'm always telling my fella that if the horror/thriller were real and involved me, it would be over in 5 minutes because I wouldnt do any of the following if I felt creeped out:

Answer the door
Or the phone
Go see what the creepy noise is in the attic or basement
Walk outside if I felt safe inside
Go inside a creepy old building
Pick up the hitchhiker

So, nope. No last minute Alien meetings for me.

[cherokeeprogressive]

15. No Hero You. I respect that from the bottom of my heart.

I'm no hero either. I totally respect your honesty.