Uranus in line with a Full Moon

Just to keep you informed, Uranus will be at opposition on Saturday October 15 (at 11 Universal Time).

Evening sky 2016 October 15

But so will the Moon: that is, it will be Full, and therefore very near to the same anti-Sun direction in the sky, only a few hours later, on Oct. 16 about 4 UT.  So the seventh planet, which hovers near the limit of naked-eye visibility, will be drowned out by moonlight; the better time to search telescopically for it  will be some days after opposition, when the Moon is rising later.

Uranus chart 2016 (part)

Part of the Uranus chart from Astronomical Calendar 2016, showing sloping lines of right ascension and declination.  Uranus is brighter than the stars in this field of Pisces.

 

One thought on “Uranus in line with a Full Moon”

  1. I’ve been enjoying watching through binoculars as Uranus has been moving retrograde against the background stars. It’s been quite dramatic.

    Astrologically, the very close conjunction of the full Moon with Uranus in the tropical sign of Aries is, at least, an interesting coincidence.

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