Hello,

Over the last couple of weeks, several of my friends and family members have been emailing me (and others) about the Earth's closest encounter with Mars in recorded history. The email usually starts out with some "facts," and mentions the now infamous August 27th date. The email usually ends with something like, be sure to tell all your friends and family as this encounter will not occur again in your lifetime....

As the majority of you reading this know, the encounter detailed in the emails occured on August 27th, 2003.

I remember a few of these last year, but there seems to be even more uninformed individuals this year. It has gotten to the point that I have developed a polite boilerplate response to the sender.

Is anyone else bothered by this complete lack of knowledge by the public?

Perhaps it is todays 20 second soundbite society that makes a story two years old "ancient."
But, perhaps it is the city lights that rob the night sky of its stars that is having a profound impact on us. We can no longer look to the sky at night and wonder - oftentimes there exists only a few specs in the sky...
A dark sky is easily forgettable and does not leave anyone questioning things or wanting more. Perhaps if the stars were more visible there would be less violence and the like as individuals would have a greater appreciation for life/a better perspective on life in general.
I believe individuals who study astronomy have a great appreciation for life as they realize how truly special and lucky we are to be on a Habitable Planet, in a Habitable Zone (pun intended).

Thanks for reading my rant...
Regards, Vince