Sky watchers in the city can observe Mars on April 8 when the planet is directly opposite the Sun with Earth in between. The red planet can be best viewed after midnight, when it reaches the highest elevation. Again on April 14, Mars will be closest to Earth at about 54,400,000 miles.
Several astronomy clubs in the city have organised viewing sessions from Thursday. Aniruddha Deshpande, a member of Jyotirvidya Parisanstha, said, "Opposition occurs when Mars is opposite the Earth from the Sun. At that time, the two planets will lie nearly in a straight line with respect to the Sun. This happens after every 26 months. We can see Mars rising in the east when the sun is setting in the west."
