We got pics of Uranus – and Jupiter in the Planet Parade!
The night sky world has been abuzz with talk of the great Planet Parade of 2025! January skies brought us FIVE bright planets: Saturn, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Neptune, and Uranus! And into February the skies will add one more to the list – Mercury!
We had some clear skies in late January and were able to capture distant Uranus, Jupiter and even two of Jupiter’s moons: Europa and Ganymede! Sky and Telescope has an excellent tool for locating and identifying Jupiter and its moon given the time and date – check it out here!
Ganymede is largest moon in our solar system and the only one with its own magnetic field. Europa is the moon often depicted as our second home in many sci-fi movies – that’s because there’s evidence showing it has a large saltwater ocean and just might be our best bet to support life outside of Earth.
You can see most of these visible planets, including Jupiter, with the naked eye. But to see Uranus and Neptune, as well as Jupiter’s moons, you’ll need some strong binoculars or a telescope. We were able to capture our images with our Canon 100-500mm telephoto lens. While our photos aren’t high def or detailed, it was no less thrilling to be able to see our solar system’s largest planet and some of its moons.
Due to our location, we weren’t able to get Saturn – but you may still be able to just after sunset. Here’s a throwback to when we did capture Saturn back in 2023 with that same Canon lens. You can even see the rings! So exciting!
Did you see or capture any of the planets or other celestial bodies during the great planet parade? We’d love to see your photos! Tag us on socials and tell us how you were able to capture these distant neighbors!
