March 13, 2022
On this date in 1781, William Herschel discovered the planet Uranus, which he originally called Georgium sidus, or “George’s Star” after King George III. Astronomers outside of Britain were not fond of this name, and they preferred to call the planet Herschel, after its discoverer. In 1782, Johann Elert Bode proposed the name Ouranos or Uranus – the Greek deity of the sky. The name Uranus did not become official until 1850.
This image of Uranus was one of the last taken by Voyager 2 as it flew on toward Neptune. Image credit: NASA/JPL