Observing Jupiter and Uranus

During September 2010 Jupiter and Uranus were in a close conjunction of about one degrees. Uranus is 5 times farther away and almost 3,000 times dimmer so a binocular or a telescope is needed to see the green planet. The image also shows how a thin layer of clouds made an atmospheric halo around Jupiter, which is more commonly seen around brighter objects like Venus and the Moon. Click on the constellation icon above the image to see a close-up telescopic view of this atmospheric halo around Jupiter (note the Galilean Moons in the view).