| Uranus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Number of Sattelites | 27 |
| Discovered by | William Herschel |
| Date of Discovery | March 13, 1781 |
| Atmospheric Makeup | 82.5% hydrogen 14.6% helium 2.27% methane 0.00087% hydrogen |
| Distance from Sun | 1.8 billion miles |
| Diameter | 31,950 miles 51,118 kilometers |
| Axial tilt | 97.769 degrees |
| Orbit | 84 Earthen years |
| Position in Solar System | Seventh planet from Sun |
| Surface Features | Gaseous surface, along with Great Dark Spot |
| Albedo | (geometric) 0.508 (bond) 0.298 |
| Aphelion | 1.88 billion miles |
| Perihelion | 1.72 billion miles |
| Mass of Planet | 8.68 x 10^25 kg |
| Escape Velocity | 21.26 kilometers/second |
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. Uranus was discovered by William Herschel on March 13, 1781. Uranus was the first planet to be discovered by a telescope. Uranus is home to 27 satellites. Wind speeds on Uranus can reach up to 250 miles per hour. It is slightly bigger than its brother planet, Neptune.
Formation
Edit
Uranus was formed by a nebula cloud that also created the other planets and the Sun. Since this planet was formed so far away from the Sun, there was not enough force to compact the sphere together, only leaving a gaseous planet.
Internal StructureEdit
The internal structure of Uranus is similar to that of its neighboring planet, Neptune. The structure makes Uranus the least massive of the gas giants, being only fifteen times the mass of the Earth. The variation of ices in the internal structure, which include water, ammonia, and methane, is similar to that of Neptune. Though the amount of mass the ice layer in the structure make up is not fully determined, it is estimated to make up thirteen Earth masses at the most, which 86.67% of the mass of Uranus itself.
The core of Uranus is small compared to that of other gas giants, for it only has a mass of 0.55 Earth masses. It has mostly consisted of silicate iron and nickel. The core does not make up a large portion of the planet, yet it does makeup about 0.5 Earth masses.
Rings of UranusEdit
The rings of Uranus are the most complex set of rings in the entire gas giant planet system. The rings were discovered by James L. Eillot, Douglas J. Mink, and Edward W. Dunham on March 10, 1977. There are thirteen identified rings of Uranus. Nine were found the following year of 1978. Eight years later, two more were discovered by Voyager 2, and the final two were found by the Hubble Space Telescope between the years of 2003 and 2005. The rings are composed of mostly water ice. The rings are believed to young compared to other celestial features, being only roughly 600 million years old.
AtmosphereEdit
The atmosphere of Uranus consists of more than 83% hydrogen. The rest is made up of different gases such as helium and methane.
Orbit and RotationEdit
Uranus makes one orbit around the Sun every 84 Earth years since it is more than 3 billion kilometers from the Sun.
Uranus makes one rotation on its axis-rotation in seventeen Earth hours. In the northern poles of Uranus, the speed of its winds increase as the planet rotates. The poles can rotate in fourteen hours.
PicturesEdit
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