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How to View Mars in the Night Sky

Mars, named after the Roman god of war, is a planet much like ours. There is water underneath its surface, its atmosphere often develops storms, and there are polar ice caps at the north and south poles. It's no wonder that Mars is such a sought-after object in backyard astronomy. Fortunately, Mars is one of the easiest planets to both spot and gaze at in your amateur telescope or binoculars. Although telescopes under 6 inches don't show much detail as to Mars' surface features, you can still be amazed at the wonders this planet has to offer.

Things You'll Need

Telescope (60mm aperture minimum)
Clear night
Sky map
Viewing area away from lights

Instructions

- 1
  Wait for a clear night before stargazing. Trying to view the universe with clouds in your way is a difficult and frustrating task: It's better to avoid it altogether.
- 2
  Set up your telescope in your planned viewing area. Make sure you are away from city lights, as Mars is a dim planet that is easily overshadowed by our artificial light.
- 3
  Using your finder scope, focus in on Mars, making sure that you are keeping both eyes open when searching for it.
- 4
  Gaze into your eyepiece using the lowest power magnification you have. Mars will be bright red: It will be very obvious that it is a planet, and not just another star.
- 5
  Keep using higher magnification eyepieces until you get the view you've been waiting for. At the highest power, it should look like a small marble in your viewing area.

Astronomy