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Last Post 10/16/2012 2:27 PM by  Kris Sigsbee
eclipse from Mars?
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10/16/2012 1:11 PM

    Hi scientists,

    Can you see an eclipse from Mars? will Curiousty be able to take a picture?

    Thank you!

    Tags: eclipse, Mars, Curiosity, transit, Mars eclipse

    Kris Sigsbee



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    Posts:415
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    10/16/2012 2:27 PM

    Hi Students!

    You bet you can see an eclipse on Mars! To have an eclipse, a moon or other object needs to pass between the observer and the Sun. The moons Phobos and Deimos do occassionally pass in front of the Sun as observed from Mars. In fact, Curiousity has already seen partial eclipses in September:

    http://www.nasa.gov/missi...imedia/pia16151.html

    However, an eclipse on Mars is actually more properly called a transit. Phobos and Deimos are very small, and their angular size in the sky as viewed by an observer on the surface of Mars is not large enough to completely block out the disk of the Sun. When a small object passes in front of the Sun, and does not completely block out the entire disk, it is called a transit.

    Kris

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