Astronomy Picture of the Day . ... 26.08.2003 . ... Tonight and over the next few days, when Mars is at its closest approach to Earth in nearly 60,000 years, you might get your best view ever of our planetary neighbor. Please, though, don't expect to see this much structure , or expect to see Mars rotate so much in so brief a period. ... In reality, one full Martian rotation -- a Martian day -- is only about 40 minutes longer than an Earth day. ... Publications with keywords: Mars . ...