Forget primetime TV: Neptune is live on the Web tonight

Neptune is a giant, gassy, blue planet floating in the deep reaches of our solar system.

This week, it reaches opposition: Meaning it is directly opposite the Sun in our sky. That’s an ideal time to check out the other blue planet if you have a backyard telescope.

But even if you don’t have a telescope of your own, or your own personal DIY Dobsonian project is still a few months from completion, you can watch Neptune tonight, thanks to the Slooh Observatory in the Canary Islands, Space.com, and the power of Internet video streaming.

Space.com’s live, hourlong broadcast of the Slooh scope’s viewing begins at 10 p.m. Eastern / 7 p.m. Pacific, so jump on that webcast now if you want to check it out. And read up on Neptune on NASA’s website. It’s cool (think icy winds of frozen methane whipping around the planet at supersonic speeds) and amazingly beautiful.

Check out Space.com’s Neptune webcast here.