Uranus

1. Uranus Amy Gerrelts Tyler Schmidt Madison Santee Katie Bandy (maybe)

2. Pre-Assessment • What spacecraft discovered Uranus? • Uranus is the ___ planet. • True/False: The blue color of Uranus comes from the hydrogen in the atmosphere. • How many moons does Uranus have and what are the different groups? • Which of these is not true about Uranus? • Uranus has 13 rings • It was discovered in 1781 • All of it’s major moons are made completely out of rock and ice • Lacks a solid, defined surface

3. Characteristic • Size • Radius- 15,759 miles (25,362 km) • Mass 86.81E24 kg • Surface area 3.121 billion sq. miles • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7f1nuwRq_E

4. Surface • Featureless • Lacks a solid defined surface • Gravitation is about 90%of that on earth • Second less dense • Core contains icy materials • Core temperature is very low (9,000 F) • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGbGlpeMyJk

5. Atmosphere • Heavily dominated by ice • Hydrogen and helium • The “Blue” essence is a result of methane gas absorbing light

6. Levels of atmosphere • Troposphere- • Densest • Temp. range- -243 degrees F to -370 degrees F • Layers of clouds containing: Water clouds(least pressure), ammonium hydrosulfide clouds, thin methane cloud

7. Stratosphere • Contains ethane smog contributing to the “dull” appearance of the planet • Acetylene and methane are also present

8. Thermosphere and Corona • reach temperatures of 1,070 F • Extending twice as far from the center of the planet as its surface, the far-reaching outer layers are unique to Uranus. • They create a drag on the ring particles that orbit the planet.

9. Uranus' rings • 13 known rings: 1986U2R, 6, 5, 4, Alpha, Beta, Eta, Gamma, Delta, Lambda, Epsilon, Nu and Mu • Some of the larger rings are surrounded by belts of fine dust • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8UcDnBhCkw

10. Moons • 27 moons • All named by characters from Shakespeare's writings • Moons are divided into three groups: Inner, major and Irregular.

11. Inner Moons • Cordelia, Ophelia, Bianca, Cressida, Desdemona, Juliet, Portia, Rosalind, Cupid, Belinda, Perdita, Puck, and Mab

12. Major Moons • Miranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, and Oberon • Titania is the largest of the major moons • All major moons, except Miranda are made of rock and ice. Miranda is made completely of ice. • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtKKVpONlgs

13. Irregular Moons • Francisco, Caliban, Stephano, Trinculo, Sycorax, Margaret, Prospero, Setebos, and Ferdinand

14. Gravitational Field • Tipped almost completely on it’s side thus creating a magnetic field that is strong at one pole than the other

15. Explorations • Discovered in 1781 • Voyager 2- First spacecraft to visit Uranus • Discover 10 new moons, 2 rings and the strange magnetic field

16. Collisions • Knocked on side by collision shortly after creation • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ElXNcGxNMo

17. Exit Ticket • ________ discovered Uranus. • True/False: Uranus is the 7th planet from the sun. • What causes the “blue” color? • How many moons does Uranus have and what are the different groups? • Which of these is not true about Uranus? • Uranus has 13 rings • It was discovered in 1781 • All of it’s major moons are made completely out of rock and ice • Lacks a solid, defined surface

18. Sources • http://www.space.com/18706-uranus-composition.html • http://www.space.com/18708-uranus-atmosphere.html • http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Object=Uranus&Display=Rings • http://www.universetoday.com/52072/moons-of-uranus/ • http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/profile.cfm?Sort=Target&Target=Uranus&MCode=Voyager_2