If too many clouds don’t get int eh way, stargazers in Iowa should have a great view of the planet Mars this week. One astronomer says the red planet will look like a very bright red star in the southeastern sky between 9 and 10 p.m. Steven Spangler, a professor of astronomy and physics at the University of Iowa, says Earth is passing closer to Mars right now than it has in many years. He says backyard astronomers should be able to use a telescope to distinguish some of the features on the fourth planet from the sun. Though Mars is considered “close” to Earth right now as our orbits near each other, it’s still 43-million miles away.
Iowa's Radio News Network
