Questions tagged [uranus]
Questions regarding Uranus, the 7th planet from Earth's sun.
47
questions
4
votes
2
answers
704
views
Why are heavier hydrocarbons not present in lower part of Uranian atmosphere?
I recently answered this question. While researching for the answer, I found one point quite counter-intuitive. The heavier hydrocarbons resides in stratosphere while methane, the lightest hydrocarbon ...
-4
votes
2
answers
196
views
What is Jupiter's apparent magnitude as watched from Uranus?
Saturn's apparent magnitude from Uranus is +3.228. Jupiter orbits closer to the sun than Saturn. Can we therefore expect Jupiter’s apparent magnitude from Uranus to be dimmer than Saturn's, or is it ...
22
votes
5
answers
8k
views
Why is Uranus called a "green planet"?
Uranus is called a green planet, although it appears blue in many of the photographs including those taken by spacecraft, like Voyager 2, Hubble, and JWST. NASA's Uranus page mentions it to be bluish-...
6
votes
0
answers
162
views
Are there any planetary ring system other than "Phoebe ring" not aligned to the equatorial plane?
Continuation of: Is it possible for planetary rings to be perpendicular (or near perpendicular) to the planet's orbit around the host star?
The answers discussed about Uranian ring system and how ...
6
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Is Uranus the farthest object in Solar System that you can see with naked eyes?
The following text is from this article:
The fact is, even at its brightest, Uranus is still quite faint. It’s barely perceptible as a dim speck of light to the unaided eye, even under dark skies. At ...
4
votes
1
answer
572
views
Calculating net gravitational force on Uranus
I want to calculate the net/total gravitational force which is being exerted on the planet Uranus. There are many objects in our solar system like the Sun, other planets, moons of other planets, moons ...
8
votes
1
answer
991
views
How am I supposed to locate the planets Uranus and Neptune with a 70 mm f/5.7 refractor?
I can locate all of the planets other than Uranus and Neptune. This is mainly because they are very dim and I live where there is just enough light pollution so that I can't spot them. I have a Gysker ...
8
votes
2
answers
236
views
Could there be liquid water on Uranus? Are there any indications that there might be?
Like most planets, Uranus has a very cold outer atmosphere and a very hot core. What we see is a very thick primary atmosphere with plenty of hydrogen. Deeper in, we might suppose that water ...
2
votes
1
answer
60
views
Qualities of gas giant atmospheres at a density of 1 gram per cubic centimeter
At what depth in the atmospheres of the gas giants does the density of their atmospheres equal 1 gram per cubic centimeter? What is the pressure and temperature at these depths? Are the radiations ...
23
votes
3
answers
3k
views
Why is Neptune a darker blue than Uranus?
If Neptune and Uranus have similar composition then why is Neptune a darker blue than Uranus?
4
votes
2
answers
5k
views
Why are gas giants colored the way they are?
As I understand it, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are all made primarily from varying proportions of hydrogen and helium. Despite this, Jupiter is very red, Saturn is yellow, and Uranus and ...
-2
votes
1
answer
383
views
What is Saturn’s apparent magnitude at its brightest when viewed from Uranus?
Considering that the apparent magnitude scale is an inverted scale; what is the lowest apparent magnitude of Saturn that can be seen from Uranus. We are of course talking about when Saturn is viewed ...
13
votes
4
answers
3k
views
Could Neptune be viewed with the naked eye from Uranus?
Which star or planet in our night sky can match what Neptune would look like when viewed from Uranus, or one of its moons?
The answer would be for the most favourable condition, which is when Neptune ...
0
votes
1
answer
160
views
Will the planets be pushed outwards when the sun goes red giant?
When the sun goes red giant will the planets be pushed outwards towards the periphery of the solar system?
If so, will this happen simultaneously to all planets or could, for example, a planet like ...
3
votes
2
answers
529
views
Does the lower mass of Uranus suggest it swapped position with Neptune?
As Uranus is less massive than Neptune, would this be evidence that it was formed further away from the sun than Neptune, and later it swaps orbit with Neptune to move closer to sun?
6
votes
1
answer
891
views
Why is the magnetic axis of Uranus and Neptune off center?
It(Uranus) rotates on its side, tilted almost 98 degrees from the plane of its
orbit around the sun. The axis of its magnetic field is tilted too, at
a 59-degree angle from the rotational axis. The ...
10
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Why do Uranus and Neptune have more methane than Jupiter and Saturn?
So the standard theory of the solar nebula is that in the region of the gas planets, ice and rock could condense to form planetesimals, which could then accrete hydrogen and helium to form the gas ...
7
votes
1
answer
561
views
Why was Neptune rather than Uranus chosen as an archetype?
The largest exoplanets are typically called Jupiter-like planets, or hot/cold Jupiters. Since Jupiter is the largest most massive planet in our Solar system, it makes sense that it would be chosen as ...
7
votes
1
answer
208
views
What is the underlying nature of the dark spot found on Uranus?
What is the nature of bright spots found on Uranus? actually quotes Space.com's Uranus Has a Dark Spot which says:
During the past decade, many bright spots have been seen on Uranus in both red and ...
13
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How is it possible for a collision to be responsible for Uranus's axial tilt?
I realize that the collision explanation is in any case highly (purely?) speculative, but I'm curious how it would work. If Uranus is a ball of gas, why wouldn't any colliding object just pass ...
3
votes
2
answers
119
views
When (yyyy-mm-dd) does the north pole of uranus most nearly point towards the sun?
When (yyyy-mm-dd) does the north pole of uranus most nearly point towards the sun?
The information I've found suggests this happened in 1944 or 1945, but would like to find a more precise date or ...
7
votes
1
answer
168
views
What is the nature of bright spots found on Uranus?
The following text is from space.com which was written during the time of discovery of the first dark spot on Uranus:
During the past decade, many bright spots have been seen on Uranus in
both red ...
4
votes
1
answer
346
views
What causes the strong winds on Uranus?
I was just looking up something about Uranus on Google, and read a line I had read many times before - "The strong winds of Uranus...". So, short and easy - "What causes the strong ...
1
vote
1
answer
598
views
Why are Uranus' satellites named after characters in Shakespeare?
Oberon, Titania, Ophelia, Puck, Miranda... Uranus' satellites are named for characters in the works of Shakespeare and Pope. Yet the names of Jupiter and Saturn's moon come from the Roman and Greek ...
3
votes
0
answers
98
views
Discovery papers for Uranus and Neptune
I would like to have the discovery papers, notices or announcements done by Herschel with Uranus and Le Verrier with Neptune. I know that Herschel adressed the Royal Society and Le Verrier sent some ...
4
votes
1
answer
62
views
What is the difference between aurorae and electroglow?
One of the discoveries of Voyager 2 at Uranus was a phenomenon called "electroglow", which as I understand it is related to charged particles interacting with the atmosphere that cause the ...
1
vote
2
answers
446
views
Transit of Uranus from Neptune
I would like to help find sources or calculations for the following dates found in Wikipedia (in French). The next Uranus transit from Neptune will happen :
...
28
votes
3
answers
2k
views
What is the accepted theory as to why Uranus' axis is tilted so severely?
The planet Uranus is another solar system anomaly, where according to the NASA profile has an axial tilt of 97.8 degrees, also considered to be retrograde. This NASA summary "Uranus" suggests the ...
4
votes
1
answer
182
views
Composition of ice giants
After reading the paper "The Measured Compositions of Uranus and Neptune from their Formation on the CO Ice Line", I was left with doubts which I would like to clarify.
Firstly, the paper proposes ...
13
votes
2
answers
384
views
If the axial tilt of Uranus (97°) was caused by a giant impact, then why do its moons orbit around its equator at the same tilt (≈97°)?
So the most accepted explanation for Uranus' axial tilt is that it once had a normal tilt like the other planets bar Venus (0° to 30°), but then a certain massive object collided with it and flipped ...
29
votes
1
answer
3k
views
How is Uranus' north pole defined?
The rotation axis of the planet Uranus is tilted by 98° compared to its plane of orbit. This means that the north pole of Uranus is "under" the ecliptic compared to the north pole of other planets.
...
2
votes
2
answers
119
views
First spectroscopic detection of Uranus' rotation?
As an undergraduate exercise quite a while ago, we placed the equator of Jupiter's disk across the slit of a high resolution grating spectrometer and then measured the tilt of the resulting line in ...
4
votes
1
answer
461
views
Uranus' axis of rotation-when discovered?
Who discovered it, and how was that accomplished. I had assumed it was known before Voyager 2 arrived at the planet since it isn't mentioned in JPL voyager 2 Uranus Approach
3
votes
1
answer
111
views
What kind of effects can maintain Uranus' rings' eccentricities?
The recent paper Thermal Emission from the Uranian Ring System has been in the news recently. The introduction mentions:
The ε ring, the brightest and most massive of the narrow rings, was shown to ...
4
votes
1
answer
184
views
What constraints are there on solid material in the ice giants?
Recently there has been experimental verification of superionic water ice (suggested to be called ice XVIII, not sure if this nomenclature is official yet), which turns out to be a solid (or at ...
9
votes
1
answer
879
views
Which star did Uranus occult in 1977 when the planet's rings were discovered?
In 1977, Uranus occulted a star, and the starlight flickered 40 minutes before and after the actual occultation, revealing Uranus' rings.This is common knowledge to astronomers, but what I can't find ...
8
votes
1
answer
367
views
Why is Uranus able to support a regular satellite system?
Uranus has an obliquity of 98° which means that the mutual inclination between a satellite orbiting in its equatorial plane and the orbit of Uranus around the Sun would exceed the critical angle for ...
5
votes
1
answer
307
views
Aren't there any rock or similar firm material on/in the gas giant planets?
Aren't there any rock or similar firm material on/in the gas giant planets? What happens if a rock asteroid hits one of these planets? Shouldn't the rock accumulate in the center of the planet due to ...
0
votes
1
answer
239
views
Why was Uranus named what it was? [duplicate]
Why was Uranus named what it was, and who came up with the name?
2
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Would a spacecraft just go "through" a gas giant?
From my understanding of the word gas giant, it is a planet composed of entirely a gaseous atmosphere, and so planets Jupiter and onwards fall in this category.
That being said, what would stop a ...
1
vote
2
answers
2k
views
Does Uranus have a stronger gravitational pull on its moons than Earth does?
I've read that Uranus has a lower surface gravity due to its lower density than Earth. However, does this mean Uranus has a weaker pull on its moons than Earth does for the same reason?
5
votes
1
answer
294
views
Before Voyager 2, what were the highest quality photos of Uranus and Neptune?
I'm in search of historical knowledge of the outer ice giants, which seems so hard to come by. Right now I would be happy with just a photo of each, the best photo we had of them before Voyager 2. ...
23
votes
1
answer
6k
views
Why do some planets have rings?
Some planets, specifically Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune in our solar system, have planetary rings.
Why do some planets have rings? How are they made and from what? Most importantly, will I ...
18
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Will Neptune be visible with the naked eye if I am standing on its satellite
Assume that I am standing on one of the many satellites of Neptune. Will I be able to see the planet with my naked eyes (without any sort of visual aid).
If I was to stand on Moon I would be able to ...
2
votes
1
answer
382
views
axial tilt of uranus [duplicate]
Simple question: I read that the axial tilt of Uranus is 97.77 degrees. I don't understand why it would be this instead of 82.23 degrees the other way. It seems like saying that the Earth's axial tilt ...
9
votes
1
answer
310
views
What are the current accepted theories of the formation of the Uranian moon Miranda?
Miranda, a moon of Uranus is unique in that it has a very fractured surface
Source: University of Oregon
The surface is said to be jagged and fractured, with comparatively large disjointed cliffs ...
1
vote
0
answers
191
views
Which are the consequences of Uranus' high rotation axis angle? [closed]
The rotation axis of Uranus is 90 degrees away from vertical, there are some theories about its reason.. But which are the consequences of this? Which are the unique features of Uranus that happened ...