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 local timezone Europe/London.
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 | MagnitudeMag | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 Aug 15 | 1.75 | 09h 15m 44s | +17° 05’ 26” | Cancer |
| 2017 Aug 16 | 1.75 | 09h 18m 17s | +16° 53’ 59” | Cancer |
| 2017 Aug 17 | 1.76 | 09h 20m 51s | +16° 42’ 25” | Cancer |
| 2017 Aug 18 | 1.76 | 09h 23m 22s | +16° 30’ 44” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 19 | 1.76 | 09h 25m 54s | +16° 18’ 57” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 20 | 1.77 | 09h 28m 27s | +16° 07’ 05” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 21 | 1.77 | 09h 30m 57s | +15° 55’ 05” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 22 | 1.77 | 09h 33m 29s | +15° 43’ 00” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 23 | 1.77 | 09h 35m 59s | +15° 30’ 50” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 24 | 1.78 | 09h 38m 30s | +15° 18’ 33” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 25 | 1.78 | 09h 40m 59s | +15° 06’ 11” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 26 | 1.78 | 09h 43m 29s | +14° 53’ 41” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 27 | 1.78 | 09h 45m 59s | +14° 41’ 08” | Leo |
| 2017 Aug 28 | 1.79 | 09h 48m 28s | +14° 28’ 29” | Leo |
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 | |