The night sky on the night of the discovery of Uranus — 13 March 1781
On the night of 13 March 1781 the musician and astronomer William Herschel, observing with a homemade telescope in the garden of his house at 19 New King Street in Bath, noticed a small disc that was not a star. He first took it for a comet. It was the planet Uranus, the first discovered with a telescope, and it doubled the size of the known Solar System.
The sky over 19 New King Street, Bath, England
This is the real sky above 19 New King Street, Bath, England (51.38°N, 2.37°W) on 13 March 1781 at 22:30 Bath local mean time (UTC−0:09) that night (1781-03-13 22:39 UTC). The Sun was 37° below the horizon: it was full night. The Moon (waning gibbous, 81% lit) was below the horizon. No bright planet was above the horizon. Brightest named stars up: Sirius, Arcturus, Vega, Capella and Rigel.
Make the sky of YOUR date
Every night has its own sky. Pick your city and your date — the night you met, a birth, a wedding — and see the real stars above it, free.
Want this night on your wall? Make a print-ready A3 star-chart poster of 13 March 1781 — 4.99.
All 75 historic night skies · The night sky on your birthday