Aug 27 2010
Mars Hoax
The infamous Mars hoax that has widely circulated on the Internet since it first appeared in the Summer of 2004 has surfaced again. I know because I’ve recently received the email from well-intentioned individuals and it now even includes a full-blown PowerPoint presentation to provide a sense of authenticity.
The e-mail declares that tonight, the night of Aug. 27, the planet Mars will come closer to Earth than it has in thousands of years, thereby offering spectacular views of the Red Planet. The commentary even proclaims that Mars will appear “as large as the full moon”.
The problem is that the “Aug. 27″ reference was for Aug. 27, 2003, the night when Mars made a historically close pass by Earth @ 34.6 million miles. Although the Hubble Space Telescope used the opportunity to make some great images of Mars, to the naked eye Mars appeared as nothing more than a bright star, not at all like the full moon.
FWIW it is impossible from the Earth for Mars to ever appear as large at the moon, but I’m sure we’ll be seeing this email again in the future… maybe next time with a video.
Isn’t technology wonderful?





