Uranus was named after the earlisest god of the sky in Greek and Roman mythology. It is the seventh planet from the sun, only Neptune and Pluto are farther away. These last three planets are a great mystery and unfortunately, not too much is known about them because of the great distance that separates them from the earth. Uranus is known as the Sideways Planet because it is greatly inclined at its equator (see General Information), moreso than any other planet in the solar system.
General Information on Uranus:
Diameter (miles)= 31,600
Mass (trillion trillion lbs)= 190.95
Density (earth=1)= .216
Gravity (earth=1)= .79
Period of Rotation (hours)= 17.2
Escape Velocity (mph)= 47,470
Major Atmospheric Gas= Hydrogen
Inclination of Equator (degrees)= 82.1
Known Moons= 15
Mean Orbital Velocity (mph)= 15,234
Minimum Distance From Sun= 1,699
(millions of miles)
Maximum Distance From Sun= 1,868
(millions of miles)
Mean Distance From Sun= 1,784
(millions of miles)
Period of Revolution (earth years)= 84.01
Detailed information on Uranus:
Everything--
Little is known about the surface of Uranus though it is believed that the planet is surrounded by clouds. It's temperature is guessed to be about minus 357 degrees Farenheit. There are fifteen know satellites and Uranus also has at least eleven thin rings around it, but they are much fainter than Saturn's. They seem to be made of countless chunks of some unknown black substance. Most of the chunks are about one year in diameter. These rings are always parallel with Uranus' equator.
Uranus was discovered in 1781 by Sir William Herschel, a British astronomer. By 1948 five small moons were detected orbitting Uranus. When the United States spacecraft Voyager 2 flew by the planet in 1986, ten other moons, smaller than the first five, were discovered.
