SPACE — In astronomy books, the planets Uranus and Neptune in the Solar System are described as having pale blue and green colors. However, now, a new study published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, has revealed that these two ice giants actually have a very similar color, namely greenish blue.
The study was carried out by a team from the University of Oxford. This study follows previous research in 2022. At that time the research analyzed the spectrum of light reflected from Uranus and Neptune from several sources, including space telescope image spectrographs on the Hubble Space Telescope.
This latest research from Oxford scientists puts an end to the popular belief that Neptune has deep shades of blue. New findings indicate that Uranus and Neptune have similar colors. Neptune is only slightly bluer than Uranus.
“Uranus still looks plain and a bit boring, but Neptune also looks a bit washed out when you do a full true color reconstruction,” said Professor Patrick Irwin, lead author of the study from the University of Oxford.
According to him, the colors of Uranus and Neptune are actually very similar. Neptune is only slightly bluer than Uranus. These color differences are caused by differences in the opacity of the methane haze and ice layers.
Neptune has a thinner layer of haze. This allows more sunlight to reach deeper in the atmosphere. Sunlight can be absorbed by methane gas, which absorbs red light making the planet look slightly bluer.
This research also reveals the mystery of why Uranus appears to change color with the seasons. Previous observations have revealed that the planet Uranus appears greener during its summer and winter when its polar regions face the Earth and the sun.
Using computer models, the team suggests that this color change is not simply caused by lower methane levels in Uranus’ polar regions. This change is also caused by a haze of frozen methane particles above the poles facing the sun, scattering light and increasing the reflection of green and red wavelengths.
However, Irwin said there were still many unanswered questions. Among the unanswered mysteries include why methane levels are lower at Uranus’ poles, and why such haze would form over warmer poles.
“There is still a lot about this planet that we don’t understand,” he said.
2024-01-06 04:54:00
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