Road to Mars  
 
 Image Credit & Copyright:  
John Chumack 
  
 Explanation:  
What's that light at the end of the road?
Mars.
This is a good month to 
point out Mars to your 
friends and family because our 
neighboring planet will not only be its 
brightest in 15 years, 
it will be visible for much of night.
During this month, 
Mars will be about 180 degrees around from the Sun, 
and near the closest it ever gets to 
planet Earth. 
In terms of orbits, Mars is also 
nearing the closest point to the Sun in its 
elliptical orbit, 
just as Earth moves nearly between it and the Sun -- an alignment known as 
perihelic opposition.
In terms of 
viewing, orange Mars will rise in the east just as the Sun sets in the west, on the opposite side of the sky.
Mars
 will climb in the sky during the night, reach its highest near 
midnight, and then set in the west just as the Sun begins to rise in the
 east. 
The red planet was captured setting beyond a stretch of road in 
Arches National Park 
in mid-May near 
Moab, Utah, 
USA. 
Source: NASA