Mars
Mars Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Mars is now with respect to the brightest stars and constellations.
More advanced sky charts are available on TheSkyLive for this object: 1) the Online Planetarium which is interactive and allows to select dates and additional objects to visualize; and 2) the Live Position and Data Tracker which provides the highest precision position data and features deep sky imagery from the Digitized Sky Survey.
High Precision Live Sky Chart
Mars Rise and Set Times
Today's Mars rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the Europe/London timezone.
Mars Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Mars computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Mars in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Apparent DiameterDiameter | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Dec 08 | 23h 01m 32s | -07° 15’ 06” | 0.09 | 8.8” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 09 | 23h 03m 55s | -06° 58’ 21” | 0.10 | 8.7” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 10 | 23h 06m 18s | -06° 41’ 31” | 0.12 | 8.7” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 11 | 23h 08m 40s | -06° 24’ 41” | 0.14 | 8.6” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 12 | 23h 11m 03s | -06° 07’ 46” | 0.15 | 8.5” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 13 | 23h 13m 27s | -05° 50’ 51” | 0.17 | 8.5” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 14 | 23h 15m 51s | -05° 33’ 51” | 0.18 | 8.4” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 15 | 23h 18m 15s | -05° 16’ 50” | 0.20 | 8.3” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 16 | 23h 20m 39s | -04° 59’ 48” | 0.22 | 8.3” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 17 | 23h 23m 03s | -04° 42’ 42” | 0.23 | 8.2” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 18 | 23h 25m 27s | -04° 25’ 36” | 0.25 | 8.2” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 19 | 23h 27m 51s | -04° 08’ 26” | 0.26 | 8.1” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 20 | 23h 30m 15s | -03° 51’ 16” | 0.28 | 8.0” | Aquarius |
| 2018 Dec 21 | 23h 32m 39s | -03° 34’ 05” | 0.30 | 8.0” | Aquarius |
Distance of Mars from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Mars from Earth as a function of time. Distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with a 2 days interval.
The reported distances might be inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of Mars is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Mars
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Mars, according to the most recent ephemerides data. Magnitude data is sampled with a 2 days interval and there might be inaccuracies for objects changing brightness very rapidly during the course of a few days. For comets there could be large discrepancies between the observed and predicted brightness because of their highly dynamic behaviour.
Mars Physical Data
The following shows the known values of the most important physical parameters of Mars. Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Physical Parameter | Value | Relative to Earth |
|---|---|---|
| Diameter | 6779 km | 0.5320 |
| Mass | 0.641693 x 1024 kg | 0.1074 |
| Density | 3.934 gr/cm3 | 0.7135 |
| Escape Velocity | 5.03 km/s | 0.4495 |
| Sideral Rotation | 24.6230 hours | 1.0288 |
| Absolute Magnitude | -1.52 | |
| Geometric Albedo | 0.15 | |