Uranus will reach opposition—when it appears on the opposite side of the sun in our sky—on November 21, 2025. At that time, Uranus will be closest, brightest, and visible all night long. This will be the best time to observe Uranus.
Uranus at opposition 2025
Moment of opposition: Uranus will reach its opposition on November 21, 2025, at 13 UTC (8 a.m. EST).
When to see: At its November 21 opposition, Uranus will rise in the east at sunset and will be visible all night.
After opposition, Uranus will disappear from the morning sky gradually as it rises and sets four minutes earlier each day.
Three months after opposition, i.e., by the end of February 2026, Uranus will be visible in the evening sky only as it will set at midnight.
How to identify: Uranus will be located very close to the famous Pleiades star cluster. Under a dark sky, it will appear as a faint, star-like point of light to the naked eye. It will be easily visible through a pair of binoculars or a telescope.
Closest approach of Uranus: At its November 21 opposition, Uranus will be closest to Earth, at a distance of 18.51 AU, or about 2.77 billion km.
Brightness at opposition: At its November 21 opposition, Uranus will be brightest in 2025 and will shine at magnitude +5.6.
Apparent size at opposition: At its November 21 opposition, Uranus will be largest in apparent size in 2025 and will appear about 3.8 arcseconds in diameter through a telescope.
Constellation at opposition: At its November 21 opposition, Uranus will be located in the zodiac constellation Taurus, the Bull.
What does “Uranus at opposition” mean?
Uranus reaches opposition when Earth passes between the sun and the seventh planet, Uranus.
As the sun and Uranus lie on opposite sides of Earth during opposition, they appear on opposite sides of the sky, about 180° apart.
As a result, Uranus rises in the east when the sun sets in the west, reaches its highest point in the sky at midnight when the sun is below your feet, and sets in the west when the sun rises in the east.
How often does Uranus reach opposition?
Uranus takes about 84 Earth years to orbit the sun once. So when our Earth makes one full orbit around the sun, Uranus travels 1/84 of the way around the sun. So to create Uranus’s opposition, our Earth would have to travel an extra 1/84 of the way in its orbit, which takes about (1/84)*365 = 4 days to travel.
That’s why Uranus reaches opposition once every 1 year and 4 days, or 369 days.
Uranus’s opposition from 2025 to 2029
Here are the dates of Uranus’s opposition from 2025 to 2029:
| Date of opposition | Distance from Earth (AU) |
|---|---|
| November 21, 2025 | 18.51 |
| November 25, 2026 | 18.44 |
| November 30, 2027 | 18.38 |
| December 3, 2028 | 18.31 |
| December 8, 2029 | 18.24 |
Please bookmark Spaceandtelescope.com or follow us on Facebook and Twitter to get latest space news, upcoming skywatching events and astronomy-related content.
