Lunar Occultation of Mars: Rare encounter Moon-Mars to be visible today

New Delhi, April 17: A big day for the Astro-enthusiasts as a rare occultation is going to occur in the galaxy today. Today, at around 5 PM the moon is going to comes directly between Earth and Mars and going to form ‘Lunar occultation of Mars' in the sky. Most interestingly, this lunar occultation of Mars will be visible in India only.

It is similar to an eclipse when the Earth, moon, and sun fall in line, during an occultation, the Earth, moon, and a planet align. As a result, the Red Planet will be hidden from sight as it appears to pass directly behind the moon during Tuesday's event.

The moon will hide Mars around 5.30 pm on April 17. After passing behind the Moon, Mars will reappear from the glowing edge of the crescent at 7:21 pm. This will be seen in the sky. The phenomenon is not rare but, for a given location, it is not common either. The last such occultation, visible over India in the evening, was on May 10, 2008. For India, at locations in the West, the occultation will begin when the sun is still above the horizon. Timings may vary depending on your location.

According to NASA, occultation is a phenomenon when one object passes in front of another object which is much smaller, for example when the moon passes in front of a distant star. Occultations led to the discovery of planet Uranus’ rings by Nasa’s Kuiper Airborne Observatory when the planet occulted a star. Moon-Mars occultations are visible from Earth twice a year but the space agency says it is about being in the right place at the right time to catch them.

The pair will be close enough to fit within the field of view of a telescope and also will be visible to the naked eye or through a pair of binoculars.