Uranus, Sycorax, and more

 

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Observation: September 7, 2004

 

Exposure time: 3 images over 2 1/2 hours

 

Telescope: Twenty inch at Apache Point

 

 

Description of Object:

 

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun and one of the gas giants. Two things should jump out at you from these images: 1) Uranus looks much bigger than the other objects of the night you have seen on these pages, and 2) Uranus does not move as much as the other objects you have seen.  

That is because Uranus, nearly 50,000 kilometers (31,000 miles) in diameter, is much larger than the asteroids and comets you have seen, which may only be 10's of kilometers across. If you look closely, you may find some of those other tiny objects of the night.  

If you do spot a small object of th night, it is most likely moving faster. These objects move faster than Uranus becaue they are much closer to the Earth, therefore they have a higher orbital velocity.  The orbital velocity of an object scales with its distance from the Sun. The closer in the object, the greater the velocity (like Mercury, closest planet to the Sun and swiftest planet in our Solar System).


lbleamas@psi.edu