Mars Rising Behind Elephant Rock
Yesterday, at about 10 am Universal Time , Mars and Earth passed closer than in nearly 60,000 years. Mars , noticeably red, remains the brightest object in the eastern sky just after sunset. The best views of Mars, however, will continue to be from the robot spacecraft currently orbiting Mars: the Mars Global Surveyor and the Mars Odyssey . The current pass sparked the launching of four new spacecraft toward Mars, some of which will deploy landers early next year and likely return even more spectacular view s of our planetary neighbor. Pictured above , Mars was photographed rising in the southeast behind Elephant Rock in the Valley of Fire State Park , Nevada , USA .