- MEAN RADIUS: 25362 km
- MASS: 14.48 (Earth=1)
- DENSITY: 1.28 (g/cm^3)
- GRAVITY: 1.15 (Earth=1)
- ORBIT PERIOD: 84.01 (Earth years)
- ROTATION PERIOD: 0.72 (Earth days)
- SEMIMAJOR AXIS OF ORBIT: 19.18 au
- ECCENTRICITY OF ORBIT: 0.047
When Uranus was first discovered in 1781 by William Herschel (brother to Caroline Herschel), he named it Georgium Sidus (Star of george) in honor of King George III of England. Later, astronomers changed the name to Uranus, for the ruler of Heaven and the Universe in Greek mythology. He was the father of Saturn and grandfather of Jupiter. Uranus is the seventh planet from the sun in our solar system. It is the third largest, by diameter.
Scientists classify Uranus as a Jovian planet or gas giant. It has a rocky core, surrounded by a huge ocean of water mixed with rocky material. Its atmosphere is about 83% hydrogen, 15% helium and 2% methane. While most other plantes rotate on an axis which is nearly perpendicular to their orbit, Uranus's axis is closer to parallel. There is some debate as to which pole is north.
Viewed by the naked eye, Uranus is barely visible, and was so dim as to not be considered for a place in the constellations. It appears as a blue-green disk through a powerful telescope.
Like Saturn, Uranus is a ringed planet. It has ten known rings along with 21 named satellites and 6 unnamed ones.
Satellites:
- Cordelia
Distance (000km) 50 - Radius (km) 13 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986 - Ophelia
Distance (000km) 54 - Radius (km) 16 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986 - Bianca
Distance (000km) 59 - Radius (km) 22 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986 - Cressida
Distance (000km) 62 - Radius (km) 33 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986
- Desdemona
Distance (000km) 63 - Radius (km) 29 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986 - Juliet
Distance (000km) 64 - Radius (km) 42 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986 - Portia
Distance (000km) 66 - Radius (km) 55 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986 - Rosalind
Distance (000km) 70 - Radius (km) 27 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986
- 2003U2
Distance (000km) 75 - Radius (km) 6 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Showalter - 2003 - Belinda
Distance (000km) 75 - Radius (km) 34 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986 - 1986U10
Distance (000km) 76 - Radius (km) 40 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1986 - Puck
Distance (000km) 86 - Radius (km) 77 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Voyager 2 - 1985 - 2003U1
Distance (000km) 98 - Radius (km) 8 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Showalter - 2003 - Miranda
Distance (000km) 130 - Radius (km) 236 - Mass (kg) 6.30e19 - Discovered By & Year Kuiper - 1948 - Ariel
Distance (000km) 191 - Radius (km) 579 - Mass (kg) 1.27e21 - Discovered By & Year Lassell - 1851 - Umbriel
Distance (000km) 266 - Radius (km) 585 - Mass (kg) 1.27e21 - Discovered By & Year Lassell - 1851 - Titania
Distance (000km) 436 - Radius (km) 789 - Mass (kg) 3.49e21 - Discovered By & Year Herschel - 1787 - Oberon
Distance (000km)583 - Radius (km) 761 - Mass (kg) 3.03e21 - Discovered By & Year Herschel - 1787 - 2001U3
Distance (000km) 4281 - Radius (km) 6 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Sheppard - 2003 - Caliban
Distance (000km) 7169 - Radius (km) 40 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Gladman - 1997 - Stephano
Distance (000km) 7948 - Radius (km) 15 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Gladman - 1999 - Trinculo
Distance (000km) 8578 - Radius (km) 5 - Sycorax
Distance (000km) 12213 - Radius (km) 80 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Nicholson - 1997 - 2003U3
Distance (000km) 14689 - Radius (km) 6 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Sheppard - 2003 - Prospero
Distance (000km) 16568 - Radius (km) 20 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By & Year Holman - 1999 - Setebos
Distance (000km) 17681 - Radius (km) 20 - Mass (kg) ? Kavelaars - 1999 - 2002U2
Distance (000km) 21000 - Radius (km) 6 - Discovered By & Year Sheppard - 2003