Spotlight On Mars

The planet Mars (left), shining at magnitude -1.21--the brightest and largest its been since February, 2010--does not lose its brilliance even in the wash of a nearly full moon. This image, a 9-second exposure at f/5.6, 250 ISO, 45mm focal length looks east over the roof of our house on Brentwood Drive NE in Cedar Rapids, Iowa around 8:08 PM, Tuesday, March 6, 2012. Two +3 magnitude stars in the constellation Leo on either side of Mars are barely visible in the glare. Temperature at this hour was a balmy 62 degrees F.