Mars Opposition 2025
The best time to observe Mars is when it is on the opposite side from the Sun as viewed on Earth as it will be on the night of January 16, 2025. The disk of Mars will be 14.6 arc-seconds and shine at -1.45 magnitude. The planet will be located in the constellation of Gemini. On this night, Earth catches up with Mars again and moves between it and the Sun. Use this link to jump to the night of opposition on this page.
Because of its distance and small size, Mars can be a difficult planet to find in the night sky. At times it may appear only as bright as a second magnitude star. Just before opposition Mars becomes very bright and shines all night after the Sun sets. At this time, the two planets will be closest to each other in their orbits. Earth observers can see the full disk of Mars until dawn.
Mars emerges from conjunction in January 2024 but is not readily observed until early August 2024 when the red planet is only 1.3 magnitude and the disk is 6" in diameter. Mars is in the constellation of Taurus and rising at 2 am. But a new apparition has begun and Earth and Mars march toward opposition. This is the 2024-25 apparition of Mars that continues until once again the red planet disappears behind the Sun in January 2026.
Previous Opposition: December 8, 2022 ☆ ☆ ☆ Next Opposition: February 19, 2027
The close approach between Earth and Mars at opposition is not unusual, but part of a regular cycle that the two planets established many years ago. Every 780 days, or roughly 2 years and 50 days, planet Earth passes Mars on its orbital track, overtaking the red planet. Opposition occurs when Earth and is directly between the Mars and the Sun. Just before opposition Mars will be very bright and shine all night after the Sun sets and present a full disk until dawn.
The Earth's orbit is very nearly circular, but Mars' orbit is more eccentric, that is, it varies 0.093 from circular. This means the red planet is much closer to the Sun at perihelion (206 million km) than at aphelion (249 million km) a difference of 43 million km. In comparison, the difference between Earth's aphelion and perihelion distance is 5 million km. These distances vary, of course, and I have used extremes. But those differences mean the distance between Earth and Mars at opposition is variable. The count of 780 (actually 778 days) is considered Mars' "synodic" period. Because of the speed of their orbits Earth travels for 2 years, plus an extra 50 days or so when it catches up again with Mars.
The Earth/Mars opposition cycle can be seen in the diagram. The 2025 opposition is shown at the right, represented by the disks of Earth and Mars. The image shows the solar system as though we are looking down on the Sun's north pole. Although the orbits are shown here with some accuracy, the images of the Sun, Earth, and Mars are not drawn to scale. Both Earth and Mars are shown with the north pole tipped toward the Sun. Other oppositions are represented by blue and red dots. The orbits are both marked with apsides ("a" = "aphelion" and "p" = "perihelion") and the first point of Aries. This marks the 0-degree point for RA in Earth coordinates and therefore helps to orient the orbit. The Earth-Mars opposition cycle repeats for 7 oppositions over a period of 15.8-years. When the cycle has completed 3 times (after 237 or so years) the cycle starts over and the planets again reach opposition at very similar positions where they met in order for 21 times.
In 2025, Mars' declination at opposition will be higher in the northern sky and it will make a better telescopic target for northern observers than it was during the 2020 opposition. This opposition is considered an aphelion opposition because Earth will pass Mars when the red planet is nearest to its aphelion (farthest from the Sun). Review the information on Astra's Mars Oppositions page for more information on types of oppositions. Mars is inclined to its orbit with an axial tilt of 25.2 degrees and it points its southern hemisphere toward the Sun during perihelic oppositions. Mars' orbital motion near perihelion is faster than at aphelion so there is a greater distance between perihelic oppositions as compared to the aphelic oppositions. Mars' orbit and axial tilt means that southern summers are shorter and hotter than southern winters. This can be seen in the opposition diagram above. The seasons are not equal: summer in the north lasts 182 days, while southern summers are 160 days. The seasonal differences mean that Mars north polar cap is larger than the southern cap so the southern cap may disappear completely during a perihelic opposition.
January 16 Opposition
The January 16, 2025 opposition of Mars is an aphelion opposition when Mars is reaching opposition from Earth during farther points in its orbit around from the Sun. Better oppositions are called perihelion oppositions because Mars is closer to the Sun in its orbit. If Mars is further away from the Sun, it is also further away from Earth when Earth overtakes the slower moving planet.
Mars reaches its perihelion on May 8, 2024, long before Earth could catch up to it. The southern hemisphere will be prominent at that time, but the disk of Mars will be only 4.8 arc-secs. (This is quite small for amateur instruments! Going forward we will use the " symbol to represent the measurement.) Mars will actually reach aphelion on April 14, 2025, long after opposition. Keep in mind that planets move a lot slower when near aphelion. Mars will be closest to the Earth on January 12, that is 4 days before the actual moment of opposition. At that time the distance between the two planets will be .6435 astronomical units (AU) or 59,817,062 miles (96,266,230 km) After opposition, the Earth will speed away from the red planet, only to meet up in February of 2027. During the 2024-2025 opposition, Mars will be 9,092,663 miles more distant than it was for 2022-2023 opposition.
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Path of Mars for the 2024 - 2025 Opposition
MARS begins 2024 at 1.4 mag., slipping into the constellation of Sagittarius from Scorpius when the disc is only 4" in diameter. The first Mars event of the year comes on January 27 when Mars is in conjunction with Mercury. Observing this conjunction will be a challenge as they rise less than an hour before the Sun. This conjunction is the first of six close conjunctions between Mars and the other planets in the solar system. In mid-February, Mars slips into the constellation of Capricornus, just in time to meet up with Venus on February 22. The bright inner planet has been moving toward Mars across the sky as it races back to the Sun. This time, Venus and Mars are separated by 0.6 degrees. Venus is -3.9 mag. but Mars is still shining at mag. 1.3 with a tiny 4.2" disk. This conjunction is best observed from the southern hemisphere, of course.
Just after Equinox (March 20), Mars slips into Aquarius with plenty of time for it to catch up with Saturn on April 11. Unhappily for northern observers, Mars rises just a little over an hour before the Sun. But the red planet will pull away from the Sun and rise higher in the sky, leaving Saturn behind as it slips into Pisces a week or so later. Mars in Pisces will pass underneath the Circlet, a popular asterism in this constellation. The brightest star in the Circlet is Gamma Piscis and is only 3.7 magnitude. On April 21, Mars presents its maximum southern aspect, showing off its south pole at 25.7 degrees. Sadly, the entire Martian disk is a mere 4.6", so even southern observers might not be checking out the pole on that date. On April 29, Mars (mag. 1.1) catches up with Neptune (mag. 7.9), marking the closest conjunction in the series when the two are separated by 0.04 degrees. As far as disk size goes, Mars wins because Neptune shows only a 2.2" disk.
On May 5, Mars will be occulted by a 26-day old moon visible in a wide swath starting at the eastern edge of Africa, crossing to southeast SE Asia, over the Philippines, and the western Pacific rim. Mars will be at perihelion (closest position to the Sun) on May 8, still in Pisces and rising only 1.5 hours before the Sun. (Much earlier at southern latitudes!) In June, Mars moves into Aries, the red planet is now positioned at Solstice, marking Summer in the South and Winter in the North (June 7). The Martian disk is now 5.2" in diameter. In July, Mars begins to rise for high northern latitudes. Mars enters Taurus this month, passing below Uranus on July 15, the two planets are .6 degrees apart on that date. Mars has reached .9 magnitude, but Uranus will probably require a telescope at magnitude 5.7. Also in July, Mars passes ~5 degrees below the Pleiades open star cluster (M-45.)
On August 5, Mars passes 5 degrees above the bright star Aldebaran, usually considered the eye of the bull. Compare the reddish Aldebaran (Alpha Tauri) to the disk of Mars. On August 6, Mars disk will be 6.0", marking the beginning of the 2024-2025 opposition for observers. Mars finally catches up to Jupiter, passing the gas giant by .3 degrees on August 14. Unlike the perihelic oppositions of Mars, this time Mars presents no challenge to the king of the night. Jupiter is brilliant at -2.2 magnitude while Mars appears as a reddish first-magnitude star. Mars is still feisty, though, it whizzes past the club of Orion, daring the giant to take a swing. On September 3, Mars is 16-degrees above Alpha Orionis, the famous bright star known as Betelgeuse. What an opportunity this is to compare the appearance of Mars and Betelgeuse, will they be nearly the same brightness at .7 magnitude? Guess we must go to the field to find out! In the northern high latitudes, Mars is now rising around 1 am. Mars slips into Gemini on September 6. On September 8-9, it makes a close pass below the open star cluster M-35. The red planet crosses north of the ecliptic in late September, where it will remain for the next year.
As October begins, Earth observers should see a large northern polar cap, although the disk is still quite small at 7.5", now it begins to grow steadily. Earth is preparing to pass the red planet! On October 14, Mars is at Western Quadrature that occurs when the Earth Sun and Mars make a 90-degree angle in space. Earth is the central point of that 90-degree angle. Mars, shining at .73 magnitude has begun rising before midnight. Mars moves into Cancer on October 30 reaching 0.0 magnitude on November 6.
On November 12, Mars reaches Equinox marking Northern Spring and Southern Autumn. At this point, that northern polar cap is breaking up. On December 7, Mars reaches its first stationary point and begins to move in retrograde motion. Even though Mars appears to be retreating, it will remain in Cancer for this opposition. On December 18, Mars (-1.0 mag.) has a second lunar occultation, when the waning gibbous Moon passes in front of the red planet. The occultation will be visible from arctic locations into northwestern Europe to the northwest tip of Africa. Mars will turn around and begin to move back toward Gemini for its January opposition, continuing retrograde motion through the end of 2024.
On January 12, Mars will be at closest approach when it is as close as it will get to planet Earth. At this time, the disk will be 14.5" and the planet will shine at -1.8 magnitude. On January 16, 2025, Mars will be at opposition from the Sun as viewed from the Earth. Opposition occurs when the planet is in the constellation of Gemini. Now the planet will be "up" all night rising as the Sun sets, just like the full Moon.
But just as soon as Mars and Earth reach opposition, their orbits quickly find Earth racing away from Mars. The first lunar occultation after opposition occurs on February 9, when a growing gibbous Moon covers the planet. This may be observed from northern latitudes from Scotland to the Korean peninsula. At this time the disk will be 97% illuminated. In February 2025, Mars brightness fades from -1.0 magnitude to -0.25 magnitude as Earth speeds away.
During the month of March, Mars' magnitude drops even more, shining at about +0.5 magnitude mid-month. As the month ends, Mars passes Kappa Geminorum, a fourth-magnitude star, and on April 2, 2025 a conjunction between Kappa Gem, Pollux and Mars will occur. Mars re-enters the constellation of Cancer on April 12. On April 14, Mars reaches aphelion as Spring is moving toward Summer in the northern hemisphere. On April 21 Eastern Quadrature or 90 degrees East of the Sun, shining at +.78 magnitude.
On May 6 Mars, now magnitude +1.0, passes 0.6 degrees north of the star cluster Praesepe, or the Beehive Cluster (M44 or NGC 2632). Mars enters Leo around 0hr UT of May 26. Mars passes within a degree north of Alpha Leonis or Regulus on June 17th. On June 30 a lunar occultation of Mars takes place, when a waxing crescent Moon occults the planet. This event will be visible from the South Pacific Ocean and northeastern South America. On May 30, Mars will be at Solstice when Summer begins in the North and Winter begins South. Unfortunately, the disk of Mars will be only 5"
Mars enters Virgo on July 28 the same day Mars is occulted by the waxing crescent Moon for the last time during this apparition that can only be seen from a small area of Antarctica. On July 31, Mars shines at +1.5 magnitude and sets in the northern summer twilight. In the middle of September 2025, Mars is lost to observers in the northern hemisphere.
Mars enters Libra on October 4, passing by one of my favorite double stars, Zubenelgenubi also known as Alpha Librae. On October 21, Mercury passes two degrees south of Mars, the last planetary conjunction of this apparition, but it occurs during daylight hours in North America. Mars enters Scorpius on November 3, to catch up to Mercury when it passes 2 degrees North. Mars spends a few days in Scorpius then passes through Ophiuchus, landing in Sagittarius on December 10, 2025. Mars will still be there on January 09, 2026 when it reaches conjunction with the Sun. It will be hidden in the Sun for the next two months. The 2024-2025 opposition of Earth and Mars is over.
Mars path through Gemini and Cancer 2024 / 2025
During the 2025 apparition, Mars moves through the constellations of Gemini and Cancer. As viewed from Earth, a loop through the constellation occurs as Mars appears to move backward, that is from East to West. During this apparition the loop is closed, because Mars will appear to cross its own path. Mars opened 2024 north of the ecliptic, but crosses the ecliptic in mid-September. The red planet will be below the ecliptic until it returns to the Sun in January 2026.
Perhaps Mars was frightened by bees as it approached the Beehive Cluster in Cancer. On December 6, 2024, Mars turns tail and returns to Gemini and retrograde motion for this apparition begins. At this time the disk of Mars will be 12.1" with the North Polar Cap visible. Mars continues to travel backward and gains brightness, reaching -2.8 magnitude on January 16, when it will be at opposition at 0232 UT. But the planets move on and a month later, Mars reaches its second stationary point on February 16, when it will be at -.96 magnitude. Mars returns to its regular path as if it never traveled backward at all.
Stationary and Retrograde Points
Mars and other outer planets appear to change their direction in the sky as the Earth speeds past them. As Mars goes about its normal orbit, it appears to move through the constellations on the ecliptic in a regular pattern from West to East. This is contrary to the motion of the stars that move from East to West as the Earth rotates. So during the months around opposition, Mars becomes bright, calling attention to itself for astronomers or anyone looking up who can see that bright red warrior. The difference between Mars at its farthest distance and when Earth is passing it is greater than it is for any other planets. At first Mars seems to behave as usual, but then it does a little dance, and starts to move in the opposite direction or retrograde motion.
Before retrograde motion begins, Mars seems to stand still. This can be thought of as Earth, coming around the curve of its orbit so that Mars appears to quit moving. This is merely our line-of-sight. It's like being on a train when it is being passed by a faster train. If you are looking out the train window, suddenly you feel like you are moving backwards. Earth and Mars are doing something like this, the blue planet is lapping the red planet on their orbital tracks. On December 6, Mars hits its first stationary point, indicated on the diagram with the number 2. After that it travels in a backward direction (East to West) that is called "retrograde". The night of opposition is January 16, 2025 when Mars will shine at -1.8 magnitude. (position 3) Now the Sun is directly behind the Earth and Mars is 180-degrees away from it. On February 24, 2025 Mars comes to its second stationary point (position 4). Soon Mars resumes its normal course in the sky against the background field of stars that is called "prograde". It's important to remember that Mars never does anything but continue to revolve in its usual counterclockwise orbit. It is only our line-of-sight that makes it seem to move in a loop or sometimes an ess-curve against the background stars.
At position 5, Mars has been left behind and both planets orbit the Sun until their mutual speeds and positions reunite them for the next opposition. The Mars disk shrinks and will continue to do so until Mars disappears behind the Sun in December 2025. The date of conjunction is January 9, 2026 when Mars is 2.5 AU away from Earth.
Mars Disk Size
The first disk of Mars on the chart below represents the size and magnitude of the Mars when it first emerged from behind the Sun in January 2024. This tiny disk represents the view of Mars when it is far from Earth, presenting a small disk, not quite 4" in diameter. As can be seen, the disk will not grow to the grand size it did in 2018, but it will still present a large disk. From the northern hemisphere, astronomers will have a better image of Mars because it will be much higher in the sky.
By January 2025, the disk of Mars will grow to the about the size noted here for the 2024-2025 opposition. The disk of Mars will be 100% illuminated as observed from Earth. At its closest, the actual disk of Mars will be 14.6", the largest it will be for the opposition of 2025. Because a large disk will give a better resolution, images will be made by amateurs and professional astronomers alike. Of course, an instrument with a larger aperture will reveal more details on Mars but amateurs with small instruments will be rewarded.
Mars is expected to shine at -1.45 magnitude on the date of opposition, far less than it was during perihelic oppositions. Its disk will then begin to shrink as Earth pulls away from the red planet. By February 15, 2025, about 30 days later, the disk will be about 11.4". At that time Mars will shine about -0.64 magnitude.
Some helpful links
For more in depth information on Mars at opposition, go to Astra's Mars Oppositions page.
Find out which side of Mars is visible while you are out viewing the red planet through a telescope. Sky & Telescope magazine features an interactive application, Mars profiler. Use this tool to find out what side of the martian surface is currently in your viewfinder or check up on the time of your observation.
A.L.P.O. MARS Section - American League of Planetary Observers
The 2024-2025 Aphelic Apparition of Mars - by Jeffrey D. Beish
Opposition of Mars - Nakedeyeplanets.com - by Martin J. Powell
Naked Eye planets is a excellent resource for anyone interested in observing Mars or other planets in the solar system. A very detailed description of the path that Mars takes during an opposition is available at the site.
Mars at Opposition (2025) In-the-sky.org
Edited by Dominic Ford. Customizable star charts are available this site, for Mars and other objects.
B.A.A. Mars Section - British Astronomical Association
Hubble Space Telescope Images of Mars
Mars in opposition in 2018 (annotated) - Labels features visible shortly before opposition when there was a dust storm
Stormy Mars in opposition in 2018 - About 2 weeks before closest approach
Mars 2016/2018 side-by-side - Show how different Mars looked in 2016 from 2018 due to dust storm and Mars-Earth circumstances
Animation of difference in Mars orientation, 2016 and 2018 - This shows how different seasons on Mars change the planet's appearance for Earth observers. Because the south pole is pointing toward the Sun, Hellas Basin can be seen more clearly during perihelion apparitions.
One last image that I really love because Saturn was at opposition a month earlier than Mars. The year 2018 brought 3 oppositions in quick succession including Jupiter at opposition May 9. This image shows that Hubble Space Telescope is a planetary instrument as well as a deep sky marvel:
For more observation tips go to this article: What's up article/observing Mars.
For drawing help check here: What's up article/drawing Mars.
Last Opposition: December 8, 2022
To find out about Earth's missions to Mars, go to Astra's Mars Exploration page.
If you love the red planet as much as Astra does, check out the Astra's Stargate main page on Mars, the 3 Faces of Mars page!
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