A Near-Infrared View of Uranus, Its Ring system, and Two Satellites

SPACEART

Uranus by Subaru 2002

Desktop available

Hilo - Mar 18, 2002
This image of Uranus, its ring system, and two of its satellites Miranda (top-center) and Ariel (bottom-left) is from Subaru Telescope's Coronagraphic Imager with Adaptive Optics (CIAO) combined with Subaru Telescope's adaptive optics system (AO).

On March 13, 1781, British astronomer William Herschel discovered an object that appeared large compared to a star during observations with a homemade 6.3 inch (16 cm) telescope. The object, which was initially thought to be a comet, turned out to be a new planet outside Saturn's orbit, and was named Uranus.

Uranus revolves around the Sun in approximately 84 years on an elliptic orbit whose average radius is approximately 1.7 billion miles (2.8 billion kilometers). Unlike other planets, Uranus spins on its side with respect to its orbital plane. Since 1851, over 10 satellites and 10 rings have been discovered around Uranus.

This image was taken during tests of the combined use of CIAO and AO in July 2001. It combines near-infrared images in three different filters, so the colors are not the same as what we would see in the optical.

In this color scheme, methane, the dominant component of Uranus's atmosphere, shows up as blue.

Scientists from several research institutes and universities, in addition to the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, participated in the development of CIAO and Subaru Telescope's AO system. The team from Kobe University processed this image.

The image was first introduced to the public in a Japanese television program "Youkoso Senpai" ("Welcome back Graduate!") by the Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK) on January 20, 2002.

STELLAR SPACE

A Bow Shock Near A Young Star

Baltimore - Mar 6, 2002
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope continues to reveal various stunning and intricate treasures that reside within the nearby, intense star-forming region known as the Great Nebula in Orion. One such jewel is the bow shock around the very young star, LL Ori, featured in this Hubble Heritage image.

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2016 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.