Uranus

The seventh planet from the Sun, Uranus is about twenty times further from the Sun and four times bigger than the Earth. The Uranus year is about 84 Earth years. The day is about 18 hours. It is made up of gases, rock, and ices. Uranus spins on its side. On average, Uranus is 1.8 billion miles from the sun. Its diameter is 31,690 miles.

Uranus is named for the Greek mythological god of the heavens. Since it absorbs red light, it appears blue. There are 15 moons and 11 rings surrounding the planet.

Interesting Facts
· Colliding comets may have helped form Uranus and Neptune.
· Uranus is a greenish blue color because the methane in the atmosphere absorbs red wavelengths in sunlight.
· The axis of Uranus runs nearly parallel to the plane's orbit, so Uranus appears to roll along part of its orbit like a ball.
· If you weigh 100 pounds on Earth, you would weigh 91 pounds on Uranus.

 

1 Orbit of Sun	30,685.55 Days
1 Rotation	18 Hours
Distance From Sun	Between 1.7 & 1.85 Billion Miles
Average Temperature	-350° F
Atmosphere	Hydrogen, Helium, Methane
Diameter	31,690 Miles

 

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Other Sites
· The Nine Planets (http://www.planets4kids.com/uranus.htm)
· KidsAstronomy.com (http://www.kidsastronomy.com/uranus.htm)
· Introduction to the Nine Planets (http://www.seds.org/billa/tnp/uranus.html)