2007-02-26 13:09:32 · 8 answers · asked by dhcaffee 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Yes it can. Currently Mars is in Saggitarius so it is quite close to the sun in the sky. It rises in the early morning and by the time it makes it's way above the horizon to any significant degree, morning twilight is beginning. So, right now it is not easy to spot with the naked eye. It will be at opposition this coming December at which point it will be visible in the sky all night and easy to see.
Like all other naked-eye planets, it just appears like a star in the sky.
2007-02-26 13:13:48 · answer #1 · answered by Arkalius 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, Mars can be seen just before sunrise near the southeast horizon. It is a fairly bright object at magnitude 1.3 and shows an orange/red color. The disk is too small to see with the naked eye so it does look more like a star. Even in amateur telescopes no detail can be seen on the disk at this time because it is so far away in its orbit right now.
2007-02-26 14:14:21 · answer #2 · answered by Twizard113 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes. Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn can all be seen as bright stars that don't stay in the same constellation all the time. Remember that people were arguing about how these planets moved (around the Earth or around the Sun) long before the telescope was invented. But you do need a telescope to see Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, as well as the asteroids.
2007-02-26 14:50:43 · answer #3 · answered by campbelp2002 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not only can you see it, but it's the most distinctive "star" in the sky because every other year or so it is VERY bright for a long period of time high in the night sky, and it is unquestionably reddish. You'll know it when you see it.
Mars was known in antiquity thousands of years before telescopes. Our very word PLANET comes from the ancient Greek "plantai", which meant "wandering star" -- the Greeks applied this term to those bright "stars" that wandered through the constellations of the sky.
2007-02-26 15:04:19 · answer #4 · answered by KevinStud99 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yup. If I can see Jupiter and Venus, than why not Mars? I saw it once but I had to have it pointed out. You can sepparate plannets from stars by looking at them realy closely. Do they slightly twinkle a bit? It's a star. If not, It's a planet.
2007-02-26 14:51:33 · answer #5 · answered by Jenna L 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, but it does not look like a very faint star. Mars (when visible in the sky at midnight) looks quite bright. (Bright enough to be clearly orange and not white like the faint stars.)
2007-02-26 13:54:58 · answer #6 · answered by Rob S 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, it's out in the morning but it's not very spectacular. Wait untilt the summer when it brightens more and heads into the evening sky.
2007-02-26 15:15:23 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
in short, yes, but it will look like a very faint star of even the clearest of nights
2007-02-26 13:13:35 · answer #8 · answered by supervinny 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋