Close encounter between Mars and Earth

The two planets passed at 120.7 million kilometers (75 million miles) away from each other, which NASA said will not happen again until July 31, 2018. The average distance between Earth and Mars is 225 million kilometers (140 million miles), with the neighboring planets sometimes reaching distances as far as 402.3 million kilometers (250 million miles) when they are diametrically opposite the Sun. Stargazers will have to wait until 2287 to see Mars at that distance again, according to NASA.