It'll be all eyes to the skies late tonight as skywatchers prepare to see Mars at its biggest and brightest since 2018.

The Red Planet and the sun will be on directly opposite sides of Earth in an event known as "opposition" among astronomers, which only happens every two years or so.

According to experts, the planet will look its biggest and brightest at around 1am on Wednesday.

Scientists say all three bodies will be in a straight line at 23:20 GMT.

The Royal Observatory Greenwich says that the early morning viewing will be the brightest the plant will be for the next 13 years.

“It’s a really good chance to view it – the last time this happened was 2018 but it was quite difficult for a lot of people to see because it was quite down in the horizon,” Hannah Banyard, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, told PA.

Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald: Credit: NasaCredit: Nasa

She added: “For about a month or so now, it’s been quite easy to see, as it’s getting close to Opposition it’s rising earlier, so it rises from sunset and then you can see it and it gets up quite high into the sky, so it’s really easy to spot.”

In a Nasa blog post, Lance D. Davis said that best way to see Mars in detail around opposition is with a telescope, but it can still be seen with the naked eye.

He wrote: "When it comes to observing Mars around opposition, telescopes will show more of the planet’s details, such as dark and light regions on Mars’ surface, and the prominent south polar ice cap, which will be tilted towards the Earth.

"Due to the turbulence of our atmosphere, these details can be hard to see, especially in smaller telescopes.

"Many amateur astronomers use a colour video camera attached to their telescope, running special software that selects the best frames to stack into a single image. This helps in negating the blurring caused by the air."

Ms Banyard added: “You can see it as a bright orangey-red looking star just with your eyes, but I recommend using at least a four-inch telescope with 24-millimetre magnification and then you’ll be able to make out some features on the surface.

“The next time you will be able to see Mars as big and bright will be 2033.”