Astronomy Cast 577: Mars in Opposition by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Every 2 years or so Mars lines up nicely with the Earth. It takes only 2 minutes to communicate with the rovers. You can see the polar ice caps in a small telescope. And it's the best time to send your spacecraft to the Red Planet.\xa0 Oct 3rd: Moon & Mars conjunction, 1.1\xb0 separation. Oct 6th: Mars opposition. Dec 21st: Jupiter/Saturn conjunction, 0.1\xb0 separation! Feb 18th "Percy" lands on Mars' Jezero crater.