Neptune

9 Stories

Neptune, Uranus Are Almost the Same Color
Neptune Isn't the Color
Many People Think It Is
NEW STUDY
Jan 5, 2024 10:59 AM CST

Neptune Isn't the Color Many People Think It Is

It's a pale color almost identical to Uranus, not deep blue, researchers say

(Newser) - The bluest planet in the solar system is the one you're currently on, according to new research. Researchers say that when images of Neptune were made from data sent back by NASA's Voyager 2 in the 1980s, the planet was depicted as deep blue to enhance contrast and...

NASA Releases Staggering Photos of Neptune

Our most distant planet's rings are crisp

(Newser) - If you picture Neptune as a blue ring-less planet, new images released Wednesday from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope are about to set you straight. The images show what CNN refers to as the planet's "crisp, narrow rings." As Heidi Hammel of the Webb project says,...

As a Moon of Saturn Died, Planet's Rings Were Born
'Pretty Good Story' May
Explain Saturn's Rings
in case you missed it
Sep 18, 2022 3:55 PM CDT

'Pretty Good Story' May Explain Saturn's Rings

Scientists think one of its moons may have exploded eons ago

(Newser) - Saturn's rings are made from the guts of a vanished moon that got a bit too close to the planet. That's the conclusion of a new study that claims not only to explain the formation of the rings but also the significant tilt at which the solar system'...

Scientists Baffled by Neptune's Temperature Swings
Scientists Baffled by
Neptune's Temperature Swings
NEW STUDY
Apr 12, 2022 10:55 AM CDT

Scientists Baffled by Neptune's Temperature Swings

Temps should be 'slowly growing warmer, not colder' amid southern summer

(Newser) - Neptune's southern hemisphere has spent the last 17 years in its summer season, yet global temperatures have plummeted. It's a head-scratching finding that leaves astronomers with more questions than answers. "Since we have been observing Neptune during its early southern summer, we would expect temperatures to be...

Planet 9 Might Be a Black Hole
Planet 9 Might Not Be a Planet
new study
Sep 28, 2019 11:30 AM CDT

Planet 9 Might Not Be a Planet

Two young PhDs offer a bold new theory

(Newser) - "What if Planet 9 is a Primordial Black Hole?" That's the title of a new paper about the mysterious gravity source at the edge of our solar system, Business Insider reports. Posted Tuesday on arXiv , the paper suggests that the still-unseen source—which some call Planet Nine, or...

Hunch Leads Astronomer to New Neptune Moon

Planet's 14th moon is just 12 miles across

(Newser) - An astronomer poring over old images from the Hubble Space Telescope has discovered a previously unknown 14th moon of Neptune. SETI Institute researcher Mark Showalter—who has five other moon discoveries to his name—followed a hunch while studying ring segments around the planet and tracked a white dot to...

Solar System May Have Ejected Mystery Planet: Scientist
 Solar System 
 Kicked Out 
 Extra Planet 
scientist says
Sep 26, 2011 6:09 PM CDT

Solar System Kicked Out Extra Planet

Early ejection may have helped Earth survive

(Newser) - Thank your lucky stars that our solar system was only big enough for eight planets. Apparently a ninth one—and a gas giant, no less—was nudged out billions of years ago and made room for Earth to survive. In computer simulations of our solar system's evolution, Colorado scientist...

'Ocean of Diamond' May Shimmer on Neptune, Uranus

Molten diamond experiment suggests that liquid space bling abounds

(Newser) - Vast oceans of liquid diamond with icebergs of solid diamond floating on the surface may exist on Uranus and Neptune. Scientists melting diamonds—which requires incredibly high pressure as well as temperatures—were surprised to discover that it behaves much like water in its molten state and believe that could...

Oldest Caesar Bust Found in France

Treasure at bottom of river in Arles

(Newser) - The oldest bust of Julius Caesar ever found is among an ancient treasure trove discovered at the bottom of the Rhone river near the southern French town of Arles, which was founded by Caesar in 46 BC. The life-size marble bust depicts Caesar as a balding man with wrinkles, reports...

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