Three Histories of Uranus

International Astronomical Union Colloquium, 1982

The discovery of Uranus was a very much more important event than the addition of one primary planet to the Solar System. Indeed, it was to greatly influence future developments in a number of diverse regions. In this paper we shall consider its impact in three such areas: (l) the research on, and the acceptance of, the Titius-Bode Law; (2) the search for, and subsequent discovery of, a planet exterior to Uranus and (3) the direction of William Herschel’s own career.

Ruggiero Boscovich: astronomer, man of science and letters, 300 years after his birth Milan, May 18, 2011, 2013

On March 13th 1781 Frederick William Herschel observed a bizarre celestial body moving in the sky. Retrospectively, that astral body was not at all new at that point. It was observed by a number of astronomers since the end of 17th century (and maybe earlier). But they failed to find out its motion and catalogued it as a fixed star – each time a different one. On the other hand, Herschel realized it was moving, and catalogued it as a comet. That news of a new finding in the sky rapidly spread throughout Europe, and after some months the ‘Herschel’s comet’ was correctly recognized as a new planet, which will be named Uranus. The present paper assumes the event of the discovery of Uranus and the assessment of its planetary nature as a system of complicated, interrelated processes which involved a number of actors in the 17th-century astronomical community. In this framework, the role of the Dalmatian-born jesuit scientist Ruggiero G. Boscovich is emphasized and the meaning of this discovery is discussed as an example of his interest in theoretical research more than in observational science.

Journal of Creation, 2001

Uranus' thermal behaviour is different from that of the other Jovian planets Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune. It emits significantly less intrinsic energy than these other planets, and the actual net intrinsic emission may be zero. Naturalistic explanations have failed so far to ...

Observations of tilts of spectral lines in the spectrum of Uranus and Neptune yield the following rotational periods: "Uranus," 24 4-3 hi'; "Neptune," 22 =t= 4 hr. Neptune is cnn-firnmd to rotate in a direct sense. The position angle of the pole of Uranus, projected onto the plane of the sky, is found to be 283 4-4 °. The value for Neptune is 32 4-11 °. These results agree with the direction of the pole of Uranus inferred from the common plane of its four brightest satellites and with the direction of the pole of Neptune as inferred from the precession of Tri-ton's orbit. The rotational period of Uranus is found to be consistent with modern values of its opticM and dynamical oblateness and the theory nf solid-body rotation with hydrostati(: equilibrium. This is barely the case for the period derived for Neptune and we suspect that, future observations made under better seeing conditions may lead to a shorter rot~tinn period between 15 and 18 hr. Because of a substantial difference between our results and those of earlier spectroscopic and photometric investigations we include an a~sessment of several previously published photometric studies and a new reduction of the original Lowell aud Slipher spectroscopic plates of Urmms ~Lowell Obs. Bull. 2, 17-18, 19-20 (1912)]. The early visual photometry of Campbell (Uranus) and Hall (Neptune) is found to be more satisfactnrily accounted for by periods of 21.6 and 23.1 hr, respectively, than by the periods originally suggested by the observers. Our reduction of the Lowell and Slipher Uranus plates yields a period near 33 hr uncorrected for seeing. This value is consistent with the results based on the 4-m echelle date.

1986

Numerical modelling of the gravitational capture and contraction of Uranus" primitive atmosphere with the modern laplacian theory, suggests that the four outer moons consist mostly of frozen methane and have densities -0.53 g/cm 3. Miranda, and any new moons interior to its orbit, contains mostly rock and water ice. with density -1.35 g/cm 3.

Icarus, 1979

Several models for the atmosphere of Uranus are considered. If the H2 abundance is less than 250 km-am and the internal heat source is only a few percent of the total emitted energy then the cloud at the base of the atmosphere may be composed of solid CI-I4 particles, while if the H2 abundance is greater than 250 km-am or if the internal heat source is near the current upper limit of 35% of the total emitted energy the cloud at the base of the atmosphere may be composed of either solid NHa or H2S particles.

2006

Some major earthquakes coincide with the transit of Uranus over the angle of the national horoscopes. The angle is a bone structure of a horoscope, so it is not hard to imagine how vulnerable and shaky the angle can be when it is hit by Uranus. Nicholas Campion together with Michael Baigent and Charles Harvey write, “As in natal astrology the angles, the MC and AS, of a national or group chart are always particularly sensitive to transits” (Mundane Astrology 226). The angle is a coordinate composed of Ascendant (ASC)/Descendant (DES) axis and Medium Coeli (MC)/Imum Coeli (IC) axis. In mundane astrology, the ASC signifies the appearance of the nation as a whole, its image, myth and national characteristics; it is the face. The IC is the ground on which the nation builds up; the land, homes and its deep rooted traditions. The DES signifies the diplomacy of the nation in relation to other societies and countries; it is the face of the nation facing to the other’s. The MC is the head of the nation standing on the enduring foundation of the IC. It signifies the government, capital and the social structure. The angle signifies not only the society, culture and politics in general but also physical and ecological bodies of the nations. On the other hand, the transit of Uranus in mundane astrology signifies a radical shift in society and culture as an historical event due to scientific discoveries and technological inventions or revolutionary change in the collective mind for innovation and liberation. The change is irresistible. The more the nation denies the change, the more upheaval is the result. Earthquake, war lead by tyranny, disastrous accidents and chaotic happenings are examples of negative manifestations of the extremity of Uranus. Earthquake is an archetypal manifestation of the Uranus transit. Uranus trembles the body of the nation represented by the angle as if it awakes the nation’s collective psyche. Many cases of the earthquakes are not simple natural disasters. The change is happening not only in the seismic diastrophism but also in complexity of social, political, cultural and ecological levels of the collective unconscious. The phenomenon of the earthquake is an ecopsychological manifestation of the collective unconscious of totally new ideas and concepts urging radical change of the old systems. Earthquakes, tsunami, hurricane, whatever the natural disasters might be, we should not separate ecology from psychology and sociology. Following six case studies of the earthquakes demonstrate the Uranus transit over the angle taking place at the time of the crucial social change.

Planetary and Space Science, 2014

Giant planets helped to shape the conditions we see in the Solar System today and they account for more than 99% of the mass of the Sun's planetary system. They can be subdivided into the Ice Giants (Uranus and Neptune) and the Gas Giants (Jupiter and Saturn), which differ from each other in a number of fundamental ways. Uranus, in particular is the most challenging to our understanding of planetary formation and evolution, with its large obliquity, low self-luminosity, highly asymmetrical internal field, and puzzling internal structure. Uranus also has a rich planetary system consisting of a system of inner natural satellites and complex ring system, five major natural icy satellites, a system of irregular moons with varied dynamical histories, and a highly asymmetrical magnetosphere. Voyager 2 is the only spacecraft to have explored Uranus, with a flyby in 1986, and no mission is currently planned to this enigmatic system. However, a mission to the uranian system would open a new window on the origin and evolution of the Solar System and would provide crucial information on a wide variety of physicochemical processes in our Solar System. These have clear implications for understanding exoplanetary systems. In this paper we describe the science case for an orbital mission to Uranus with an atmospheric entry probe to sample the composition and atmospheric physics in Uranus' atmosphere. The characteristics of such an orbiter and a strawman scientific payload are described and we discuss the technical challenges for such a mission. This paper is based on a white paper submitted to the European Space Agency's call for science themes for its large-class mission programme in 2013.

Science, 2007

The rings of Uranus are oriented edge-on to Earth in 2007 for the first time since their 1977 discovery. This provides a rare opportunity to observe their dark (unlit) side, where dense rings darken to near invisibility, but faint rings become much brighter. We present a ground-based infrared image of the unlit side of the rings that shows that the system has changed dramatically since previous views. A broad cloud of faint material permeates the system, but is not correlated with the well-known narrow rings or with the embedded dust belts imaged by Voyager. Although some differences can be explained by the unusual viewing angle, we conclude that the dust distribution within the system has changed significantly since the 1986 Voyager spacecraft encounter and occurs on much larger scales than has been seen in other planetary systems.

International Astronomical Union Colloquium

The Voyager 2 spacecraft is targeted for an encounter with Uranus in January, 1986. In addition to a brief description of the 11 scientific investigations and the Uranian encounter geometry, the scientific capabilities of Voyager 2 are discussed for the general areas of the atmosphere, the rings, the satellites, and the magnetosphere.