BBC Sky at Night

THE PLANETS

PICK OF THE MONTH

Uranus

Best time to see: 31 October, around midnight UT

Altitude: 52º

Location: Aries

Direction: South

Features: Colour, moons, atmosphere

Recommended equipment: 150mm or larger

Uranus will reach opposition on Thursday 4 November. Around this time the planet appears at its brightest and largest for the year, but its great distance from Earth, means such effects aren’t noticeably different to other, non-opposition dates. One benefit of opposition for the outer planets however, is an increased period of observability

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