Is uranus ever visible from Earth?

huey_pilot · Mar 20, 2005

Is Uranus ever visible from Earth? If so when will it be visible and what magnitude will it be?

yevaud · Mar 20, 2005

Yes, though not by the naked eye. You'd need at least access to a modest telescope (not certain if you can see it with binocs...). This site will help you figure out what can be seen when, from where. http://www.heavens-above.com/ Follow the instructions. Enjoy! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> Differential Diagnosis: "I am both amused and annoyed that you think I should be less stubborn than you are." </div>

huey_pilot · Mar 20, 2005

I do not think it is ever visible from my location. But thanks anyways

alpha_taur1 · Mar 20, 2005

At magnitude 6, you should be able to observe it with binoculars, unless you have a lot of urban emissions/light to contend with. From a dark country location, you should be able to see it. The fine star finder on Heavens Above should help you find it, but a basic knowedge of the constellations will help.

vogon13 · Mar 20, 2005

IIRC this is one of those 'just barely theoretically possible, but nobody has done it yet' things. Just have to get the right person on top of Mauna Kea on the right night, and pray he can describe accurately the positions of the nearby adjacent equally dim stars to confirm the sighting. IIRC, there seems to be an 'ancient Chinese' visual sighting of Callisto and/or Ganymede recorded somewhere. They are actually brighter on occasion than Uranus, but the glare from Jupiter masks them quite effectively. Good luck, go give it your best try! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!So many people, so few recipes !!Let's clean up this stinkhole !! </div>

Saiph · Mar 21, 2005

it should be. It's on the ecliptic (plane of hte solar system) and that's visible even from the poles (as low as it'll get). It may not be visible "now", at this point in it's orbit (unlikely, as you'd have to be very close to one of earth's poles) or at this time of year...a possiblity, cause I remember looking at it about 4 months ago... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> --------------------SaiphMOD@gmail.com -------------------"This is my Timey Wimey Detector. Goes "bing" when there's stuff. It also fries eggs at 30 paces, wether you want it to or not actually. I've learned to stay away from hens: It's not pretty when they blow" -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink" </div>

vogon13 · Mar 21, 2005

To clarify, I was talking about a visual sighting. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!So many people, so few recipes !!Let's clean up this stinkhole !! </div>

bbrock · Mar 21, 2005

Both Uranus and Neptune are visible with at least 10x50 binoculars. I used Starry Night to locate both planets and looked at them all last summer. You can even notice the slight change in position over a period of several months. Using a telescope, Neputne is a dismal dissapointment out to 400x. It still looks like a dim star. Uranus starts to look like a round object and is a little more planet looking. Both look like dim stars with binoculars. Pluto is the real challenge. Magnitude 14. Clear Skies Bill

yevaud · Mar 21, 2005

Yeah, I was wondering. I couldn't recollect ever seeing (or trying to see) Uranus using Binocs. Then again, I have a lot of light pollution here, so it was generally pointless to try. So I used the 6 1/2 inch reflector (very old telescope) at my school's observatory. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> Differential Diagnosis: "I am both amused and annoyed that you think I should be less stubborn than you are." </div>

CalliArcale · Mar 21, 2005

Interesting factoid related to this subject: The first recorded sighting of the planet Neptune was much earlier than most people think. The first recorded sighting was in 1613, by the noted astronomer Galileo! Unfortunately, poor weather conditions on subsequent days prevented him from observing its motion, and he never knew what that faint star he'd seen near Jupiter actually was. So although it's challenging, you can see these distant worlds through a small telescope. However, I'm doubtful you could ever spot them with the naked eye. You might be able to in really really really dark skies if you've got really really really good eyes and know EXACTLY where to look. Otherwise, you're not going to see it, or if you do, you won't ever know it. But with a telescope, you should have a viewing opportunity from almost anywhere (apart from seriously light-polluted areas, like major metropolitan areas). According to JPL's Space Calendar, Uranus passed a mere 0.7 degrees from Venus on March 4. In mid-May, it will pass 1.1 degrees from Mars. There are also times when it is visible on SOHO's coronographs (at which time it is much too close to the Sun to be visible from Earth). <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff." -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink" </div>

heyscottie · Mar 21, 2005

Uranus is currently a daytime object. In the coming couple of months, it will become an early morning object, and could be sighted in Aquarius. Around about June or so, it should be visible at more reasonable times, throughout most of the night.

alokmohan · Mar 22, 2005

One thing seems clear.We cant see uranus by naked eyes.Saturn is our last limit.

heyscottie · Mar 22, 2005

True enough! I myself have spotted it only once. I had to be a pretty high magnification (I think around 200x or so) before it started to possibly seem like it might be more than just a dim star. Of course, if you knew ahead of time exactly where it was, then some moderate binoculars would be sufficient to see it -- but it would just look like a 6th magnitude star.

thalion · Mar 22, 2005

Uranus is potentially visible with the naked eye; at it's brightest, it's 5.5-5.7, almost a full magnitude brighter than the typical naked eye limit of 6.5. True, a person would need very dark, transparent skies, but if you know exactly where to look it should be apparent.

huey_pilot · Mar 22, 2005

Ive got a telescope that might be able to view it. But I can't even find M31, so uranus would be impossible for me.

avaunt · Mar 22, 2005

Put a mirror on the floor. <img src="/images/icons/tongue.gif" />

huey_pilot · Mar 22, 2005

I haven't found that amusing since 3rd grade.

avaunt · Mar 23, 2005

Then you are old before your time, sport, and i feel for you.

bbrock · Mar 23, 2005

I suggest you acquire Starry Night Software. This is really good computer software. I don't work for that company, but I do use the program. It works very well and it allows me to find any of these objects as well as identify the star field they reside in. Uranus and Neptune would not be destinguishable unless you knew what tiny dot in a star pattern to look. That program works very well. Clear Skies Bill

huey_pilot · Mar 25, 2005

I have Starry Night Beginner, but i like the http://www.skyandtelescope.com interactive sky chart better.

vogon13 · Jul 18, 2005

In the Sept. 2005 issue of Sky and Telescope magazine, Joshua Roth claims a sighting of the planet Uranus with nothing more than his well crafted prescription eyeglasses. Page 30. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!So many people, so few recipes !!Let's clean up this stinkhole !! </div>

alokmohan · Jul 19, 2005

Since it has been published in S and T ,Likely to be correct.

Is uranus ever visible from Earth?

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