Uranus -- visible right now?

I see several sky maps indicating the position of
Uranus close to where Mars is.

I wonder, what is the current magnitude of this
planet? Is it worth trying to see it with an 8"
telescope? I know that maybe it will just look
like a boring white spot, but it's still exciting
giving it a try, right?

Carlos
--

"Carlos Moreno" wrote in message
...

I see several sky maps indicating the position of
Uranus close to where Mars is.

correct

I wonder, what is the current magnitude of this
planet? Is it worth trying to see it with an 8"
telescope? I know that maybe it will just look
like a boring white spot, but it's still exciting
giving it a try, right?

well, according to Sky & Telescope september 2003 issue, the magnitude of
uranus (per 16th september) is +5.7
So it should be no problem to view it in your scope!

Jim Hewitt wrote:

"Steven Van Impe" wrote in

(12") telescope showed a bright blue disc. In an 8" you should be able to
see it clearly, and easily identify it as such by the colour.

In my 5" CAT it is a small pale green disk. Worth looking at in my opinion,
especially with an 8".


Great!! I definitely will try!

Cheers,

Carlos
--

If your gonna look at Uranus, don't forget to check Neptune out as
well.

Don't expect to make any detail other than its cool color.



On Thu, 14 Aug 2003 14:23:48 -0400, Carlos Moreno
wrote:

Jim Hewitt wrote:

"Steven Van Impe" wrote in

(12") telescope showed a bright blue disc. In an 8" you should be able to
see it clearly, and easily identify it as such by the colour.

In my 5" CAT it is a small pale green disk. Worth looking at in my opinion,
especially with an 8".


Great!! I definitely will try!

Cheers,

Carlos

Hi Carlos ,

Sure ! It aolmost ten times smaller than Mars, but you will be able to see
the disk and discern the color without any trouble. Because the cloud
features are some of the lowest contrast things on any planet, and the
image is so small, don't expect to see any detail on the disk . . . but if
you look very carefully and closely, who knows what you'll see.

Good Luck !
--- Dave


--
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Never be afraid of trying something new for the love of it.
Remember... amateurs built the Ark.
Professionals built the Titanic!


----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Carlos Moreno" wrote in message
...

I see several sky maps indicating the position of
Uranus close to where Mars is.

I wonder, what is the current magnitude of this
planet? Is it worth trying to see it with an 8"
telescope? I know that maybe it will just look
like a boring white spot, but it's still exciting
giving it a try, right?

Carlos
--

David Nakamoto wrote:
Hi Carlos ,

Sure ! It aolmost ten times smaller than Mars, but you will be able
to see the disk and discern the color without any trouble. Because
the cloud features are some of the lowest contrast things on any
planet, and the image is so small, don't expect to see any detail on
the disk . . . but if you look very carefully and closely, who knows
what you'll see.

Good Luck !
--- Dave

And if you have a camera capable of moderately long exposures, you can image
the Moons of Uranus like I did with my C8 a week ago
http://home.online.no/~arnholm/astro/uranus/

I managed to "see" Oberon & Titania!

Clear skies
Carsten A. Arnholm
http://home.online.no/~arnholm/astro/astro.htm
N59.776 E10.457

"Carsten A. Arnholm" wrote in message
...
David Nakamoto wrote:
Hi Carlos ,

Sure ! It aolmost ten times smaller than Mars, but you will be able
to see the disk and discern the color without any trouble. Because
the cloud features are some of the lowest contrast things on any
planet, and the image is so small, don't expect to see any detail on
the disk . . . but if you look very carefully and closely, who knows
what you'll see.

Good Luck !
--- Dave

And if you have a camera capable of moderately long exposures, you can
image
the Moons of Uranus like I did with my C8 a week ago
http://home.online.no/~arnholm/astro/uranus/

I managed to "see" Oberon & Titania!

that's awesome, great!

I saw Uranus about this time last summer in my 8" newt! It was quite
evident given it's distinct bright blue color. When I popped in my
Barlow it even took on the unmistakeable shape of a disk, rather than a
point. DEFINITELY worth a look!

Now Pluto, on the other hand... good luck!



In article ,
says...

I see several sky maps indicating the position of
Uranus close to where Mars is.

I wonder, what is the current magnitude of this
planet? Is it worth trying to see it with an 8"
telescope? I know that maybe it will just look
like a boring white spot, but it's still exciting
giving it a try, right?

Carlos
--



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Saw it tonight for my first time in my 10 inch dob.

A small greenish disk at 100x, definately a disk !

Carlos Moreno wrote in message ...

I see several sky maps indicating the position of
Uranus close to where Mars is...
Is it worth trying to see it with an 8"
telescope? I know that maybe it will just look
like a boring white spot ...

As others have written, it is certainly worth seeing, and it is
actually quite attractive in an 8" scope. Definitely *not* a
boring white spot. Actually, Uranus is quite easy to find and
to see in 7x35 binoculars, and is faintly but clearly visible
to the naked eye under reasonably dark skies.

Use fairly high power, at least 100X and preferably more, to
get a good sense of the disk.

- Tony Flanders