First view of Uranus

Uranus was another first (for me) view in the same observing session that I mentioned below. Despite the fact that Uranus is almost 1.7 billion miles away, the planet is actually an easy target and clearly resolves as a disc.

This gas giant appears blue/green due to the methane in its atmosphere. The color was very clear, even in my light polluted skies. I got the best view at 215x using the 13mm Ethos eyepiece in my CPC 1100. Unlike Jupiter or Saturn, no surface details are visible which isn't surprising given the distance.

The view at the eyepiece was very similar to the picture here.