|
Uranus in tonight's moonlight glare. Uranus, the seventh planet outward from the sun, is only visible to the unaided eye on a moonless, inky-black night. Even at that, Uranus appears no brighter than the faintest visible stars.
• When it comes to Uranus, most stargazers need binoculars, a moon-free night and a detailed sky chart to see this distant world. Although we show its location in the sky chart at the top of the page, you probably won't see faint Pisces in tonight's blinding moonlight. But try your luck in a dark country sky in December, once the moon drops out of the evening sky.
• If you are familiar with the Great Square of Pegasus, use the two easternmost stars - Alpheratz and Algenib - to star-hop to the general vicinity of Uranus. Draw an imaginary line from Alpheratz through Algenib and go twice the Alpheratz/Algenib distance. Uranus resides in front of the constellation Pisces and very near the ecliptic. This detailed sky chart is your ticket to finding the planet Uranus.
• Jupiter, by the way, the fifth planet outward from the sun, is a different story altogether. It's easily visible on a moonlit night or from most any light-polluted city. After all, this brilliant beauty of a planet is the fourth brightest celestial object after the sun, moon and the planet Venus. You simply can't miss Jupiter in the east at nightfall, because it's by far the brightest star-like object in the evening sky. Watch for Jupiter in the coming evenings as the moon approaches it.
• Bottom line: On the night of November 22, 2012, the moon is located along our line of sight to the faint planet Uranus. But don't expect to see Uranus in the moon's glare. On the other hand, there's a very bright planet that the moon will be edging toward in the coming nights. It's Jupiter, now nearly at its best for this year. The moon and Jupiter will be closest on November 28.
•
|
|
