EARTH FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF THE OTHER PLANETS IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM - Cosmic Journey

 From our home planet, Earth, we can easily spot five visibly bright celestial bodies in our Solar System: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. These planets are easily observable with the naked eye. 

Now, let's shift our viewpoint and embark on an imaginary journey from one planet to another, observing how Earth appears from their vantage points. 

Observing Earth from Venus

Take, for instance, the scenario where we're orbiting Venus. Due to its dense atmosphere, direct observation from Venus's surface is not possible. However, from this orbital position, Earth outshines all other celestial bodies in the sky, second only to the Sun, with an apparent magnitude of -6.6 at opposition.

We then voyage to the other two inner Solar System planets. From these viewpoints, Earth's apparent magnitude increases slightly but still retains its status as one of the brightest objects in the sky.

 Earth's Apparent Magnitude from Mercury and Mars

Let's consider the perspective from Mercury, where Earth's apparent magnitude stands at -5, and from Mars, where Earth's magnitude ascends to -2.5.

Earth as Seen from Outer Solar System Planets

As we venture to the outer Solar System planets, Earth's visual size decreases, eventually becoming just another tiny dot in the cosmic vista. It gradually recedes from sight, becoming nearly invisible. This was poignantly captured in an iconic image taken by the Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn, where Earth appears as a minuscule dot, lost among the planet's rings, over a billion kilometers away.

Credit: NASA, JPL, SSI.