View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Raul Cortes in Monterrey, Mexico, tried to capture the moment the moon passed in front of Mars, but clouds got in his way. He wrote: “Trying to capture the Mars occultation. This was as far as I could go. After that moment, the moon and Mars were completely covered by clouds. Could not see the exact moment when the occultation occurred.” Beautiful shot, though, Raul! Thank you. Raul has a slightly earlier photo of the near-occultation, with Mars slightly farther from the moon but more clearly visible, here.View at EarthSky Community Photos. | For those in the mountain states of the U.S., it wasn’t possible to see Mars at the moment it went behind the moon (the moon and Mars had not risen yet). But many caught the moment Mars came out from behind the moon’s darkened limb. Geraint Smith in San Cristobal, New Mexico, captured this scene as Mars crept out from behind the moon and through the clouds. Thank you, Geraint!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Mars – as it came out from behind the moon – as captured in Tucson, Arizona, on February 18, 2020, by Eliot Herman. Eliot used a Questar telescope and a Nikon D850 to capture the scene at 5:40 a.m. Mountain Time. Thanks, Eliot!
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Ken Gallagher in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, wrote: “Overslept and missed beginning of occultation, but just in time to catch the end.” Super! Thanks, Ken!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Mike Montague in Los Angeles, California, wrote: “I took a picture 1 minute after lunar occultation of Mars ended. I used maximum zoom, 3000mm equivalent, on Nikon P1000.” Thanks, Mike!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Joel Weatherly in Edmonton, Aberta, Canada, wrote on February 18, 2020: “Mars was peeking out from behind the moon mere moments after this morning’s lunar occultation of Mars. I encountered a lot of atmospheric turbulence this morning so the view was a little warbly, but it was still a neat event to see.” Thank you, Joel!Steve Pauken in Bisbee, Arizona, caught the instant before the moon slid in front of Mars.And Steve Pauken caught the instant after Mars emerged from behind the moon.View at EarthSky Community Photos. Photographer Eliot Herman said: “Mars and Moon post-occultation fading in the breaking Tucson AZ dawn. Mars was still visible glowing red as dawn was breaking which made for a beautiful view.”
Bottom line: Photos from the EarthSky Community of the February 18, 2020, occultation of Mars by the moon.
Deborah Byrd created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and founded EarthSky.org in 1994. Today, she serves as Editor-in-Chief of this website. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named 3505 Byrd in her honor. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. "Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers," she says.
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