November 2, 2024: Planets Uranus and Neptune are visible through a binocular on moonless nights. Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars are easily visible during nighttime hours.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 7:25 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 5:43 p.m. CDT. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.
Bright Planets
During the nighttime four bright planets are visible. Venus and Saturn are visible shortly after sunset, as the sky darkens. Venus is in the southwest, while dimmer Saturn is in the southeast.
Jupiter and Mars rise later during the evening and are best seen high in the southern sky during morning twilight. With the sun rising later, the planets are easy to see as sky watchers begin their work days.
See Uranus and Neptune
Planets Uranus and Neptune are in the sky during the night, but they are not easily visible without a binocular. Even with optical help, Neptune is in front of a dim Pisces’ starfield. Uranus is in the same binocular field with the Pleiades star cluster, part of Taurus.
In the following description, the planets are seen in the southern sky, when they are highest. At these places, we see them through the clearest sky. The times of visibility are not necessarily convenient with modern human daily cycles. The planets are visible sooner or later than described. Additionally, while the charts show today’s date, the planets are near these starfields throughout the month.
Here’s what to look for:
Neptune
The most-distant planet in the modern solar system is the dimmest and the most difficult to see. It is in front of Pisces, nearly 15° to the upper left of Saturn. During early November, Neptune is in the southern sky four hours after sunset. By month’s end, that occurs two hours after nightfall.
Neptune’s background is a nondescript region of the sky without any bright stars to use as a reference. It is too far from Saturn for them to fit into the same binocular field. Appearing as a bluish star with the binocular’s optical assist, it is near 20 Piscium (20 Psc on the chart) and 24 Piscium (24 Psc).
Uranus
Uranus is near the Pleiades star cluster, resembling a miniature dipper that rides on the back of the Bull.
At this season Uranus is high in the southern sky near midnight. Initially locate bright Jupiter. It is the brightest star in the sky after Venus sets. The Jovian Giant is retrograding between the Bull’s horns.
Place the Pleiades toward the upper left edge of the binocular’s field. Find the stars 13 Tauri (13 Tau on the chart) and 14 Tauri (14 Tau) below center. Appearing as a star, aquamarine Uranus is near the lower right edge of the field, to the lower right of 14 Tauri.
Look for these planets every clear evening. Likely multiple attempts are needed to locate Neptune against the Pisces’ starfield. Uranus is easy to locate near the Pleiades, an excellent guidepost.
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