Strange Universe 10/25/20

Every 26 months Earth and Mars meet, but the encounter can occur at either a narrow gap between our orbits or a wide gap. The difference matters because, after waiting 26 months between Martian encounters, called oppositions, the Red Planet can be more than twice as bright on some occasions compared to others. Whenever we meet in the early autumn, we meet at very nearly its closest and best, which makes it very large through backyard telescopes and simply brilliant in the night sky.