Mars
Click here for an animated GIF spanning 2.5 hours of Mars and its moons on Dec. 26, 2007
2007-2008 Images
North is up unless otherwise noted
Mars on December 19, 2007 at 04:40 UT
15.9 arcseconds in diameter, central meridian 340.6°
Celestron C11 @ f/43, DMK21AF04.AS video camera and SBIG/Custom Scientific RGB filters.
While each version of the image is contrast-enhanced, the RGB image is the closest to a 'true color' view, and easily shows the blue clouds forming in the southern hemisphere and the seasonal breakup of the top cloud cap known as the north polar hood (NPH), revealing the bright white north polar cap which has formed under the NPH over a period of several months. On December 10th, 2007 Spring started on Mars in the northern hemisphere and while the NPH is breaking up, the south polar hood will soon be forming as Winter approaches in the south over the next few months and will eventually form the south polar cap. Mars reaches solstice on June 25th, 2008.
Since the majority of Martian surface features are best recorded in the red channel, the RRGB images use an extra red channel copy blended into the image to further enhance these features and appear to penetrate the clouds to better reveal the surface.
Mars on December 15, 2007 at 05:43 UT
15.9 arcseconds in diameter, central meridian 031°
Mars on December 9, 2007 at 05:22 UT
15.6 arcseconds in diameter, central meridian 079°
Celestron C11 @ f/44, DMK21AF04.AS video camera and SBIG/Custom Scientific RGB filters.