A Rare Alignment of Sun, Earth, Moon, Mars--and the Human Spirit

Tonight when you look up at the sky--and I strongly urge you to do so--you can participate in three different kinds of amazing alignments. One will produce a total lunar eclipse, as Earth's shadow sweeps across the moon. One will produce the best view of Mars in more than 6 years, as the Red Planet makes its closest approach to Earth (technically that moment happened at 8:53AM EDT, but you won't be seeing Mars then). Both of these are beautiful celestial events with some unusual details.