I've been seeing stories on the internet lately about how close Mars is to Earth. It's apparently closer to Earth now than it has been for 50,000 years (60,000 according to a some stories). I had difficulty finding it in the sky until last night. Now that I've spotted it I feel a little stupid for not being able to find it before.

For those in Reno, it comes over the horizon around 9:30p (roughly) and rises fairly quickly. It rises in the sourth-east (a little more to the east) and is generally toward Ophir Peak and Virginia City. You'll will know when you see it - it is very bright.

Anyway, since news has been slow lately I thought I'd share this little bit of info about my star-gazing.