Figure 14-14: R I V U X G
Uranus’s Rings and Moons (a) This false-color infrared image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows eight of Uranus’s inner moons, all of which were discovered by Voyager 2 when it flew past Uranus in 1986. They all lie within 86,000 km of the planet’s center (only about one-fifth of the distance from Earth to our Moon). The arcs show how far each moon moves around its orbit in 90 minutes. Note the pole and equator; unlike the other planets, Uranus nearly lies on its side with its rotational axis close to its orbital plane around the Sun. (b) This infrared image from the Very Large Telescope shows five of Uranus’s larger moons. All the moons visible in this image are in prograde orbit, orbiting in the same direction as Uranus rotates. The rings in this image appear even brighter than Uranus: Gaseous methane in Uranus’s atmosphere absorbs infrared light, while ice in the rings reflects this wavelength.
Uranus’s Rings and Moons (a) This false-color infrared image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows eight of Uranus’s inner moons, all of which were discovered by Voyager 2 when it flew past Uranus in 1986. They all lie within 86,000 km of the planet’s center (only about one-fifth of the distance from Earth to our Moon). The arcs show how far each moon moves around its orbit in 90 minutes. Note the pole and equator; unlike the other planets, Uranus nearly lies on its side with its rotational axis close to its orbital plane around the Sun. (b) This infrared image from the Very Large Telescope shows five of Uranus’s larger moons. All the moons visible in this image are in prograde orbit, orbiting in the same direction as Uranus rotates. The rings in this image appear even brighter than Uranus: Gaseous methane in Uranus’s atmosphere absorbs infrared light, while ice in the rings reflects this wavelength.
(a: Erich Karkoschka, University of Arizona; and NASA, b: European Southern Observatory)