It's been the buzz of the Internet: Mars will come so close to earth it will look as large as the moon to the naked eye on Saturday.
Whoa. Not so fast, skygazer.
"It's a hoax," said Bruce Twarog, a Kansas University professor of physics and astronomy.
Twarog has been the bearer of bad news to excited sky observers in recent weeks as the bogus event neared. Twarog shrugs. A lot of people just don't have a good grasp of what's going on in the sky, he said.
And some just can't help but be wooed by the prospect of seeing a spectacle of a lifetime.
"I was crushed," said Roger Martin, publications and features editor for the KU Center for Research, who had to hear the disappointing news from Twarog. "I was really crushed. ... I guess there's a child part in everyone that wants to believe in miracles."
There appears to be no one to blame.
"No one really knows the source of this kind of urban myth," said Gary Webber, a Lawrence amateur astronomer. "Someone, somewhere wanted to aggrandize themselves so they put this false notice on the Internet."
Kansas University professor of physics and astronomy Bruce Twarog says an Internet story claiming Mars will be so close to the Earth on Saturday that it will appear as large as the moon is a hoax. Twarog explained that October and November would be better months to keep an eye out for the red planet.
Some of the phony news mirrors an event that happened on the same date two years ago.
On Aug. 27, 2003, Mars moved the closest distance ever recorded: 34.6 million miles.
For that event, fans flocked to telescopes for a glimpse of the fourth planet from the sun.
Telescopes were set up at Lawrence High and Clinton Lake for public viewing. Dozens of people came out to view Mars from those two sites, said Webber, who participated in that astronomical event.
But that is not the case this year.
Mars will be close again - but the big day isn't Saturday and, regardless, it won't be as close as it was in 2003.
October and November will be key months to check out Mars. Oct. 31 will be the best day to get another good look. It's not enough to draw the same awe that it did in 2003, Twarog said.
In a way, all this phony business has been good, Twarog said. In 2003, when it was real, astronomers had to position telescopes and work to prepare for the big event. This time, there seems to be a big event, and they don't have to do any work, Twarog said.
Twarog tells skygazers to keep an eye on the skies in October and November, but he doubts that event will attract as much attention.
Would-be watchers are too busy kicking themselves.
But, hey, there are worse things than getting excited about space.
"I didn't buy the Brooklyn Bridge," Martin said. "I didn't buy land in Florida that doesn't exist. ... I didn't do a lot of things."
So this hoax appears to have been seemingly harmless.
"No money was lost," Martin said. "Who cares if face is lost?"
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hurlehey (anonymous) says…
He just doesn't want us to know about the bases built on the Red Planet during the Reagan years!
majic12 (anonymous) says…
Maybe Saddam hid his WMDs there.
Maybe the Martians are hiding Osama.
Maybe the Flying Spaghetti Monster is from Mars.
Anyway, it's always refreshing to see an American admit that he made a mistake. So few are capable of that simple, noble gesture.
mightyquin (anonymous) says…
Humans in general, not just Americans have trouble admiting their mistakes.