Holy moly.
The Wolf Moon ate Mars. Then it spit it out.
Mars re-emerges from the limb of the Wolf Moon
This is a cell phone shot through a telescope. (The brightness and contrast were adjusted slightly in Photoshop, but that’s a Wal-Mart special camera, baby.)
“Don’t miss it. Luna occults Mars Monday evening.” Astronomer friends are the best.
The little red car sat parked in the driveway, cooling after the long drive back over the mountains. I hauled out a few scopes, invited the folks over, and we threw everything we had at the sight. There was a rig for everyone. I chose the 8” f/7.5 Zambuto-powered dob, with stereo views through a binoviewer at roughly 150x.
By my informal count from Rustburg, VA, Mars made first contact at 9:12:47 pm EST, and took 28 seconds to vanish.
The moonlight bathed the landscape, the occasional deer crunching through brilliant patches of snow. The cold had relented for the time being.
At 10:20, after a snack and a cup of tea, I turned the scope back to the Moon. Waiting, waiting…and almost missed it. I rarely draw a straight line in the wood shop, and the celestial estimate erred, too. An estimated three seconds after re-emergence, I caught tiny Mars finally free.
(10:25:52 pm EST, with the same duration of 28 seconds.)
Seeing seemed decent, and I caught the best views yet of Mars this season. A polar cap and plenty of surface markings on the Red Planet decked it in festive attire for the event. The color contrast between Mars and Luna, especially at low power, were a reversal of the Pleiades event. This time, the Moon looked colder.
Finally tearing myself away, I lugged the gear back inside. Pausing for a final moment, I looked at the rays of the Wolf Moon softly illuminating the landscape. It was three Wolfs ago that the little red car sat cooling from a longer trip–the move to Rustburg.
It’s been a good three years. Here’s to the next season!
–Josh
An unedited, uncropped eyepiece view of the Moon approaching Mars