Uranus: Planet Profile

URANUS
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun and the third largest (by diameter). Uranus is larger in
diameter but smaller in mass thanNeptune
Planet Profile
orbit: 2,870,990,000 km (19.218 AU) from Su
diameter: 51,118 km (equatorial)
mass: 8.683e25 kg
History of Uranus
Careful pronunciation may be necessary to avoid embarrassment; say "YOOR a nus"
, not "your anus"
or "urine us".
Uranus is the ancient Greek deity of the Heavens, the earliest supreme god. Uranus was the son and mate
ofGaia the father of Cronus (Saturn) and of the Cyclopes and Titans (predecessors of the Olympian gods).
Uranus, the first planet discovered in modern times, was discovered by William Herschel while systematically
searching the sky with his telescope on March 13, 1781. It had actually been seen many times before but
ignored as simply another star (the earliest recorded sighting was in 1690 when John Flamsteed cataloged it as
34 Tauri). Herschel named it "the Georgium Sidus" (the Georgian Planet) in honor of his patron, the infamous
(to Americans) King George III of England; others called it "Herschel". The name "Uranus" was first proposed
by Bode in conformity with the other planetary names from classical mythology but didn't come into common
use until 1850.
Uranus has been visited by only one spacecraft, Voyager 2 on Jan 24 1986.
Most of the planets spin on an axis nearly perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic but Uranus' axis is almost
parallel to the ecliptic. At the time of Voyager 2's passage, Uranus' south pole was pointed almost directly at the
Sun. This results in the odd fact that Uranus' polar regions receive more energy input from the Sun than do its
equatorial regions. Uranus is nevertheless hotter at its equator than at its poles. The mechanism underlying this
is unknown.
Actually, there's an ongoing battle over which of Uranus' poles is its north pole! Either its axial inclination is a
bit over 90 degrees and its rotation is direct, or it's a bit less than 90 degrees and the rotation is retrograde. The
problem is that you need to draw a dividing line *somewhere*, because in a case like Venus there is little
dispute that the rotation is indeed retrograde (not a direct rotation with an inclination of nearly 180).
Uranus is composed primarily of rock and various ices, with only about 15% hydrogen and a little helium (in
contrast to Jupiter and Saturn which are mostly hydrogen). Uranus (and Neptune) are in many ways similar to
the cores of Jupiter and Saturn minus the massive liquid metallic hydrogen envelope. It appears that Uranus
does not have a rocky core like Jupiter and Saturn but rather that its material is more or less uniformly
distributed.
Uranus' atmosphere is about 83% hydrogen, 15% helium and 2% methane.
Like the other gas planets, Uranus has bands of clouds that blow around rapidly. But they are extremely faint,
visible only with radical image enhancement of the Voyager 2 pictures (right). Recent observations
with HST (left) show larger and more pronounced streaks. FurtherHST observations show even more activity.
Uranus is no longer the bland boring planet that Voyager saw! It now seems clear that the differences are due to
seasonal effects since the Sun is now at a lower Uranian latitude which may cause more pronounced day/night
weather effects. By 2007 the Sun will be directly over Uranus's equator.
Uranus' blue color is the result of absorption of red light by methane in the upper atmosphere. There may be
colored bands like Jupiter's but they are hidden from view by the overlaying methane layer.
Like the other gas planets, Uranus has rings. Like Jupiter's, they are very dark but like Saturn's they are
composed of fairly large particles ranging up to 10 meters in diameter in addition to fine dust. There are 13
known rings, all very faint; the brightest is known as the Epsilon ring. The Uranian rings were the first after
Saturn's to be discovered. This was of considerable importance since we now know that rings are a common
feature of planets, not a peculiarity of Saturn alone.
Voyager 2 discovered 10 small moons in addition to the 5 large ones already known. It is likely that there are
several more tiny satellites within the rings.
Uranus' magnetic field is odd in that it is not centered on the center of the planet and is tilted almost 60 degrees
with respect to the axis of rotation. It is probably generated by motion at relatively shallow depths within
Uranus.
Uranus is sometimes just barely visible with the unaided eye on a very clear night; it is fairly easy to spot with
binoculars (if you know exactly where to look). A small astronomical telescope will show a small disk. There
are several Web sites that show the current position of Uranus (and the other planets) in the sky, but much more
detailed charts will be required to actually find it. Such charts can be created with a planetarium program.
Uranus' Satellites
Uranus has 27 named moons:
Unlike the other bodies in the solar system which have names from classical mythology, Uranus' moons
take their names from the writings of Shakespeare and Pope.
They form three distinct classes: the 11 small very dark inner ones discovered by Voyager 2, the 5 large
ones (right), and the newly discovered much more distant ones.
Most have nearly circular orbits in the plane of Uranus' equator (and hence at a large angle to the plane
of the ecliptic); the outer 4 are much more elliptical.
Distance Radius
Satellite (000 km) (km)
Mass
(kg) Discoverer Date
--------- -------- ------ ------- ---------- ----Cordelia
50
13
Voyager 2
1986
Ophelia
54
16
Voyager 2
1986
Bianca
59
22
Voyager 2
1986
Cressida
62
33
Voyager 2
1986
Desdemona
63
29
Voyager 2
1986
Juliet
64
42
Voyager 2
1986
Portia
66
55
Voyager 2
1986
Rosalind
70
27
Voyager 2
Cupid
75
Belinda
75
34
Voyager 2
1986
Perdita
76
40
Voyager 2
1986
Puck
86
77
Voyager 2
1985
Mab
98
Showalter
2003
Miranda
Ariel
Umbriel
Titania
130
1986
Showalter
2003
191
236 6.30e19 Kuiper
1948
579 1.27e21 Lassell
266
436
1851
585 1.27e21 Lassell
1851
789 3.49e21 Herschel
1787
Oberon
583
Francisco
4281
Sheppard
2003
Caliban
7169
40
Gladman
1997
Stephano
7948
761 3.03e21 Herschel
15
8578
Sycorax
12213
80
Nicholson
1997
Margaret
14689
Sheppard
2003
Prospero
16568
20
Holman
1999
Setebos
17681
20
Kavelaars
1999
Sheppard
2003
21000
Holman
1999
Trinculo
Ferdinand
Gladman
1787
2001
Uranus' Rings
Distance
Width
(km)
(km)
Ring
------- --------
-----
Zeta
39,600
3,500 (formally 1986U2R)
41,840
1-3
42,230
2-3
42,580
2-3
Alpha
44,720
7-12
Beta
45,670
7-12
Eta
47,190
0-2
Gamma 47,630
1-4
Delta
3-9
48,290
Lambda 50,024
1-2 (formally 1986 U1R)
Epsilon 51,140
20-100
Nu
67,300
3,800 (formally R/2003 U2)
Mu
97,700
17,000 (formally R/2003 U1)
(distance is from Uranus' center to the ring's inner edge)

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URANUS

, not "your anus"

--------- -------- ------ ------- ---------- ----Cordelia

236 6.30e19 Kuiper

579 1.27e21 Lassell

585 1.27e21 Lassell

789 3.49e21 Herschel

761 3.03e21 Herschel

3,500 (formally 1986U2R)

1-2 (formally 1986 U1R)

3,800 (formally R/2003 U2)

17,000 (formally R/2003 U1)

(distance is from Uranus' center to the ring's inner edge)

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