πͺ Space and stars πͺ The Sun and planets
Uranus
π In short
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun, an ice giant with a blue-green color. The most amazing thing about it is that it's tipped on its side, so it goes around the Sun like a rolling ball!
π€© Did you know?
- Uranus is about 2.9 billion kilometers from the Sun.
- Sunlight takes about two hours and 40 minutes to reach Uranus.
- Uranus's axis is tilted about 98 degrees.
- A year on Uranus lasts about 84 Earth years.
π Find out more
π A planet lying down
Most planets spin nearly upright, but Uranus's axis is tilted so much it's almost lying down. Scientists think a huge object crashed into it long ago and knocked it over.
π Strange seasons
Because of its tilt, one of its poles stays in sunlight for about 42 years in a row, then in darkness for another 42 years!
π‘ The first planet found by telescope
The astronomer William Herschel discovered Uranus in 1781 with a telescope; it was the first planet found after the ancient ones that can be seen with the naked eye.
π― Rings and moons
Uranus has thin, dark rings and many moons, many of them named after characters from the plays of the English writer Shakespeare.
πΈ More pictures
𧩠Test yourself
1 What's strange about Uranus?
2 What color is Uranus?
3 Uranus is about ?? billion kilometers from the Sun.
4 Which picture shows βUranusβ?
πͺ Discover more
π· Picture sources: Wikimedia Commons
- NASA (image modified by Jcpag2012) Β· Public domain
- ESA/Hubble & NASA, L. Lam Β· CC BY 4.0
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