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Opposition
Neptune at Opposition
Neptune lies opposite the Sun in our sky — closest to Earth, brightest, and visible all night in Pisces.
Your local time
22 Mar 2026, 16:54
Universal time
22 Mar 2026, 11:24 UTC
Time since
—
Partially visible from New Delhi, IndiaTelescope RequiredVisible worldwide where sky conditions allow
At opposition Neptune is directly opposite the Sun as seen from Earth. It rises at sunset, is highest around local midnight and sets at sunrise. This is also close to its minimum distance from Earth, so the planet appears at its largest and brightest for the year — the best time to observe it with a telescope.
Observation details
- Visibility
- Partially visible
- Best viewing time
- 22 Mar 2026, 05:24
- Direction to look
- WSW · azimuth 258°
- Altitude at peak
- 20.6°
- Equipment
- Telescope Required
- Distance from Earth
- 30.879 AU
- Apparent magnitude
- 8.0
- Constellation
- Pisces
At the exact peak the sky is still bright, but the object is -14° high in darkness nearby.
New Delhi, India
28.6139°, 77.2090° · default location
Photography & observing tips
- •Observe when the planet is highest, near local midnight, to look through the least atmosphere.
- •Let a telescope cool to ambient temperature for 30 minutes before high-magnification viewing.
- •Planetary imaging works best by recording short video and stacking the sharpest frames.
Other opposition events
The nearest occurrences before and after this one.