This year's record close approach [
http://www.planetar…2003/mars_closest-ap proach.html ] of Mars inspired many [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] to enjoy telescopic views [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] of the red planet. But while Mars was so bright it was hard to miss, spotting Mars' two diminutive moons was still a good test for observers [
http://www.lpl.ariz…recobs.html ] with modest sized instruments. Mars' moons were discovered in August [
http://www.usno.nav…] of 1877 by Asaph Hall at the US Naval Observatory using the large 26-inch Alvan Clark refractor [
http://www.usno.nav…]. Recorded on this August 22nd, innermost moon Phobos [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] and outermost moon Deimos [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] are seen here against the planet's glare in a digital composite image. The picture consists of of a long exposure capturing the faint, city-sized moons and overexposing the planetary disk, combined with a well exposed image of the red planet, revealing dark markings [
http://www.biblioma…frameset.html ] on the surface and the white south polar cap. The images were taken [
http://panther-obse…] by astronomer Johannes Schedler using an 11-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope at his observatory in southeastern Austria. ("Editor's note:" For help finding Mars' moons, just put your cursor over the image.)
Explanation
This year's record close approach [
http://www.planetar…2003/mars_closest-ap proach.html ] of Mars inspired many [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] to enjoy telescopic views [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] of the red planet. But while Mars was so bright it was hard to miss, spotting Mars' two diminutive moons was still a good test for observers [
http://www.lpl.ariz…recobs.html ] with modest sized instruments. Mars' moons were discovered in August [
http://www.usno.nav…] of 1877 by Asaph Hall at the US Naval Observatory using the large 26-inch Alvan Clark refractor [
http://www.usno.nav…]. Recorded on this August 22nd, innermost moon Phobos [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] and outermost moon Deimos [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] are seen here against the planet's glare in a digital composite image. The picture consists of of a long exposure capturing the faint, city-sized moons and overexposing the planetary disk, combined with a well exposed image of the red planet, revealing dark markings [
http://www.biblioma…frameset.html ] on the surface and the white south polar cap. The images were taken [
http://panther-obse…] by astronomer Johannes Schedler using an 11-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope at his observatory in southeastern Austria. ("Editor's note:" For help finding Mars' moons, just put your cursor over the image.)
Explanation
