WATCH THIS SPACE

At the time of the Voyager 2 flyby, Uranus displayed an all-but-blank appearance. This disappointed many scientists, who had hoped to find atmospheric features like those of Jupiter. Any features the planet had were hidden deep in the hydrogen-methane haze.

However, the Uranus that Voyager saw in 1986 may not tell us much about the planet we will see in the future. In 1985, the planet's south pole was pointing at the Sun. Past telescopic observations suggest that cloud markings appear on Uranus in the years around its equinoxes, when the Sun is over the planet's equator.

Uranus will reach its next equinox in 2007, but even if it does develop new features, they will not be easy to see in smaller instruments. But there is always the chance that an amateur astronomer with a big scope and a sharp eye—or a CCD camera—will get lucky.