No, Mars will not be as big as the moon

[question everything]

This fantasy has been circulating for several years now always in the summer. This year, this bogus cosmic event is expected to occur on July 27.

https://www.factcheck.org/2018/07/mars-the-moon-and-a-fictional-cosmic-event/

False (and debunked) accounts of such an impending occurrence have circulated since at least 2003, when Mars was as close to Earth as it had been in some 60,000 years, according to NASA.

That close encounter happened during both Mars opposition — which is when Mars and the sun are on directly opposite sides of Earth, an occurrence that happens every two years — and the planet’s perihelion, when Mars is closest to the sun. (NASA says such a “perihelic opposition,” as it is known, occurs every 15 to 17 years.)

While a perihelic opposition is happening this year, when Mars opposition takes place July 27, NASA says the planets won’t be as close as they were in 2003. “Our 2003 record will stand until August 28, 2287!” NASA says.

Though Mars is nearly twice the size in diameter of the moon, Noble said Mars can never appear as big as the moon because of its distance from Earth. On July 31, when Mars reaches its closest point to Earth during its orbit — its so-called close approach — it’s expected to be about 35.8 million miles away. By contrast, the moon is an average of 238,855 miles away from the Earth.

[dweller]

1. but but but

the diameter of the moon is 3474.8 k

and Mars' diameter is 6794 k



✌🏼️

[Hugin]

2. It's pretty big, tho.

for Mars.

I was just now looking out the window at Mars.

[TheBlackAdder]

3. It will be bigger. It will move between the Earth and moon.

.

Hey, how else do we get those kids to that Martian Sex Slave Colony the wingnuts keep talking about.

Wait! Didn't Trump just say the other day that we will soon go to Mars, how can there be that colony now?


Oops, Trump just deflated a RW conspiracy.

.

[Sherman A1]

5. I will wait for an update

From Batboy at The Weekly World News. He is my main source of truthiness.

[Achilleaze]

4. But there is a Big Deal lunar eclipse: Century's Longest

a celestial event of note all the same. Mars adds panache.

Century’s longest lunar eclipse July 27
By Bruce McClure | July 27, 2018

http://earthsky.org/?p=282841

[Iggo]

6. Blood Moon July 27th.

Any Aussie who is out and about at 4 in the morning and who also who believes the Mars-as-big-as-the-Moon story is gonna get some apparent confirmation.