I want to find Neptune

[coco smoko (Stephen)]

I heard that Neptune was close to Jupiter, thought i saw it but it was just a blue star...

Ok i can find Jupiter easily, where do i go from there???


Thanks, Steve..

[Coen]

Here you go.

Constellations Aqr to the left Cap to the right.

Neptune at mag 7.9, star near Jupiter at 8.4

Picture from StarCalc

Distance between Jupiter and Neptune about 42 arc minutes.

[erick (Eric)]

And once you are on it, get your magnification up and you will see it is not a point source, but a disc.

[coco smoko (Stephen)]

thanks Doc and thanks Eric. Will try and find it when the weather clears, good to hear that the star is dimmer than the planet!!!!!!

[Robert9 (Robert)]

Stephen,
Where are you in Melbourne that you can even contemplate searching the sky? Here its windy, cold, overcast and wet. B&N chance of seeing anything.

[coco smoko (Stephen)]

hi, in Armadale , you can see the planets ok from here

[niko]

Good luck Coco - you are an ambitious city dweller!

BTW - am getting guide camera shortly so we should combine our equip and see what we can come up with!!!

niko

[Darth Wader (Wade)]

G'day Coco,

It might be worthwhile waiting until later in the month for better seeing. By that time the moon will be close to new providing a little more darkness. Neptune will be near Jupiter for a while yet because of Jupiter's retrograde loop. Good luck, I'm looking for the blue planet myself this month!

Cheers
Wade

[Analog6 (Odille)]

I have a great littel free program called NightVision which generated the screens below. This is from my position, of course, but you can personalise it. I've done a fuill screen and a zoom.

Also has an attached prgoram called Ephemeris from which you can print a neat little monthly moon chart.