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                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                               2025 January 15
   Earth's moon is shown in full phase. At the top of the frame, appearing
        much smaller, is the more distant planet Mars. Please see the
                 explanation for more detailed information.

                           Wolf Moon Engulfs Mars
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Imran Sultan

   Explanation: Does the Moon ever engulf Mars? Yes, but only in the sense
   that it moves in front, which happens on rare occasions. This happened
   just yesterday, though, as seen from some locations in North America
   and western Africa. This occultation was notable not only because the
   Moon was a fully lit Wolf Moon, but because Mars was near its largest
   and brightest, moving to opposition -- the closest to the Earth in its
   orbit -- only tomorrow. The engulfing, more formally called an
   occultation, typically lasting about an hour. The featured image was
   taken from near Chicago, Illinois, USA just as Earth's largest
   satellite was angularly moving away from the much more distant red
   planet. Our Moon occasionally moves in front of all of the Solar
   System's planets. Given the temporary alignment of orbital planes, the
   next time our Moon eclipses Mars will be a relatively soon February 9.

           Growing Gallery: Moon-Mars Occultation in January 2025
                    Tomorrow's picture: galactic pinwheel
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
                  NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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