uranus

Latest about uranus

This is an image of the planet Uranus taken by the spacecraft Voyager 2 in 1986. NASA & JPL-Caltech.

Uranus: Facts about the sideways ice giant

By Adam Mann published

Reference Uranus is a strange world in the solar system that spins on its side. A new probe that will visit Uranus in the coming decades could unlock even more secrets about this peculiar planet.

Reference
An image of Neptune captured by Voyager 2 in 1989. New infrared images of the planet has revealed some surprising temperatures in its atmosphere.

Astronomers perplexed by plummeting temperatures in Neptune's atmosphere

By Harry Baker published

A surprising new study has revealed that atmospheric temperatures in Neptune's southern hemisphere have decreased in the past 17 years, despite the region entering its summer.

Neptune
This illustration shows the diamond rain on Neptune.

'Diamond rain' on Uranus and Neptune seems likely

By Paul Sutter published

Hiding beneath the outer layers of some planets, there may be something spectacular: a constant rain of diamonds.

Neptune
Researchers at Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics used the same set-up at the recent study to create superionic ice, shown here in this artistic rendering. In that instance, the ice was not stable.

Ultrahot 'superionic' ice is a new state of matter

By Ben Turner published

To create the ice, the scientists had to squeeze a water droplet to 3.5 million times Earth's atmospheric pressure and heat it hotter than the sun.

Astronomy
Auroras on Uranus behave in unexpected ways.

Scientists create most detailed map of Uranus' mysterious auroras

By Tereza Pultarova published

Uranus
Artist’s impression of a mushball descending through a giant planet’s atmosphere.

Stinky 'mushball' hailstones on Uranus may explain an atmospheric anomaly there

By Tereza Pultarova published

A recent discovery of giant ammonia-rich hailstones, dubbed mushballs, on Jupiter might explain why Uranus and Neptune seem to have no ammonia in their atmospheres.

Uranus
The blue body of Uranus glows (pin) with X-rays

Mysterious X-rays are flaring out of Uranus

By Brandon Specktor published

Astronomers detected X-rays flaring out of Uranus for the first time. It could be a case of solar scattering, or some as-yet unknown process.

Uranus
In a new study, researchers have modeled the interiors of the ice giants Uranus and Neptune.

Scientists probe the weird, alien water inside of Uranus and Neptune

By Chelsea Gohd published

Researchers are investigating an alien version of water inside the strange, icy interiors of Uranus and Neptune.

Neptune
The sun sinks below the horizon in this stunning panoramic view captured by NASA's Spirit Mars rover in 2005.

What color is the sunset on other planets?

By Donavyn Coffey published

It depends on whether the planet's atmosphere is predominantly filled with gas or dust particles.

Planets
Uranus is uniquely tipped over among the planets in our solar system. Uranus' moons and rings are also orientated this way, suggesting they formed during a cataclysmic impact which tipped it over early in its history.

What smacked Uranus on its side? Something icy and as massive as Earth, scientists say.

By Mike Wall published

Astronomers have worked out details of the giant impact that knocked Uranus so famously askew.

Uranus
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