In 1995, Mars was at opposition early in the year in Leo, and after completing its retrograde loop has been moving ever more quickly eastward against the background stars.  By late smmer, it has made it to Virgo and is about to pass by the blue star Spica on August 28, an event which should offer a very nice color contrast between the two.  Mars is magnitude +1.40 on this date, which doesn't seem right when you consider that Spica is a magnitude +0.98 star, yet they appear to be about equally bright.  Unnanotated image.