The Technology of Uranus:

Scientists do not have a lot of information about Uranus, but most of the information that they do have comes from the Voyager 2 space probe. It was launched on August 20, 1977. In 1986, the 

Voyager 2 flew within 50,000 miles of Uranus’ cloud tops. When the spacecraft was there, it flew around the planet while taking many pictures. The pictures showed scientists that the cloud tops of Uranus are a blue-green color that are made out of gas. Scientists believe the blue-green color is caused by an absorption of red light and methane gas in the upper atmosphere of Uranus. They could also see that there was probably no form of life on Uranus. Scientists doubted that there was a form of life on Uranus because the living conditions were very harsh. The worst living on Uranus is the atmosphere, which is made out of very strong gases like hydrogen, helium, and methane. Scientists also thought there was no form of life on Uranus because of the very strong winds which can get up to 450 miles an hour. The Voyager 2 also discovered ten small moons on its expedition.

The Discovery of Uranus:

Astronomer William Herschel discovered Uranus in 1781 using a telescope. It was named after a sky god in Greek mythology by German astronomer, Johan E. Bode. It was the first god in the sky for Greek mythology. Uranus was the first planet discovered since ancient times. Two moons were also discovered by William Herschel in 1781.

Uranus’ Tilt:

Uranus is the only planet in our solar system that has rings that go up and down instead of side to side. The rings go up and down because Uranus is tilted at a 98 degree angle. Uranus’ tilt is very unusual because it is much bigger than other planets’ tilts, which are mostly around 30 degrees. Scientists believe that the tilt of Uranus was caused by a collision with an earth-sized planet. Scientists do not know what planet collided with Uranus.

Interesting Facts About Uranus:

Uranus has a rocky core, which is about the size of Earth. Uranus travels on an elliptical orbit, 

which is just over 84 earth years long. Uranus takes 17 hours and 14 minutes to spin around once on its axis. Uranus has a mass 14 and a half times bigger than the Earth’s mass. However, that is only one twentieth as large as Jupiter’s mass. To find your weight on Uranus you must take your Earth weight and multiply it by 0.93. Uranus has a North and South Pole. Since Uranus lies on its side most of the time, the North Pole will get light while the South Pole will be dark, or the other way around.

The Moons:

Uranus has 21 moons that orbit around it. Uranus’ moons are named after people in Shakespearean plays. Some examples of Uranus’ moons are Ariel, Titania, Miranda, Umbriel, Craliban, and Sycorax. Some scientists believe that Uranus’ rings may have been formed from broken moons.

The Temperature of Uranus:

Uranus is one of the coldest planets in our solar system. Its average temperature is 360 degrees 

below zero Fahrenheit. Uranus is the seventh planet from the sun, which also cause it to be very cold. Other things that make Uranus so cold are cold gases and strong winds. The cold temperature on Uranus makes it impossible for any form of life to live there.

Comparison to Earth:

Uranus is a special planet because it is the farthest planet from Earth that can be seen with the naked eye. Its average distance from the earth is between 1,607,000,000 and 1,961,000,000. Uranus takes 30,685 earth days to make a full revolution around the sun. Uranus takes much longer to make a revolution around the sun because it is much farther away from the sun than Earth is. Uranus’ average distance from the sun is 1,786,400,000 miles. Uranus has a diameter of 31,763 miles, which is the third largest planet in our solar system. Earth’s diameter is much smaller than Uranus’ and is only 7,819 miles. Uranus’ circumference is 99,786 miles, which is 74,927 miles bigger than Earth’s.

Uranus’ Rings:

Uranus has many rings that are mostly dark. There are 11 known rings that go around Uranus. The rings are very unusual because instead of going from side to side, like they do on most planets, Uranus’ go up and down. Uranus’ rings go up and down because of the major tilt to its axis. Many of rings around Uranus were formed be debris from broken up space objects.

"Uranus." The Academic American Encyclopedia, 1999.

"Uranus." The World Book Encyclopedia, 2001.

Bill Arnett. Nine Planets: Uranus. <http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/uranus.html> last visited: March, 2002.

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