Uranus
is known as the “sideways planet” because it rotates on its side.
Uranus was discovered in 1781 by William Herschel.
Uranus was the first planet found using a telescope.
Uranus is an Ice Giant planet and nearly four times larger than Earth.
Uranus has 27 known moons, most of which are named after literary
characters.
Like Saturn, Jupiter and Neptune, Uranus is a ringed planet.
The first planet
found with the aid of a telescope, Uranus was discovered in 1781 by
astronomer William Herschel, although he originally thought it was
either a comet or a star.
It was two years
later that the object was universally accepted as a new planet, in
part because of observations by astronomer Johann Elert Bode. Herschel
tried unsuccessfully to name his discovery Georgium Sidus after King
George III. Instead the scientific community accepted Bode's suggestion
to name it Uranus, the Greek god of the sky, as suggested by Bode.
10
Things to know
1 Huge
2 Seventh wanderer
3 Shortish day, Longish year
4 Ice giant
5 Gassy
6 Many moons : 27 known moons
7 The other ringed world : 13 known rings
8 A bit lonely
9 Lifeless
10 One cool fact
Like Venus, Uranus rotates east to west. But Uranus is unique in that
it rotates on its side.
Source
Visit the source to get detailed information and interesting images
Uranus' unique
sideways rotation makes for weird seasons. The planet's north pole
experiences 21 years of nighttime in winter, 21 years of daytime in
summer and 42 years of day and night in the spring and fall.
|
