Are grooves on Uranus’ moon Ariel evidence for an ocean?

Uranus' moon Ariel: Gray moon-like body with bright spots and long curving canyons.

View larger. | NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft captured this view of Uranus’ moon Ariel on January 24, 1986. We can clearly see various canyons and grooves. Image via NASA/ Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Uranus’ moon Ariel might have a subsurface ocean, a study found last year. The ocean could be ancient or it could still exist … Read more

Uranus’ Moon Ariel has Deep Gashes, Could Reveal its Interior

We’ve only gotten one close-up view of Uranus and its moons, and it happened decades ago. In 1986, Voyager 2 performed a flyby of Uranus from about 81,500 km (50,600 mi) of the planet’s cloud tops. It was 130,000 km (80,000 mi) away from Uranus’ moon, Ariel, when it captured the leading image. It showed … Read more

Dramatic changes on Uranus, Neptune, Saturn and Jupiter revealed in 10 years of Hubble Telescope images (video)

The Hubble Space Telescope has spent more than thirty years providing some of the most incredible images of the known universe, but it’s only for the last ten that scientists have pointed its gaze at our solar system’s outer planets to observe them like never before. For the past decade, NASA’s Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy … Read more

Some of Uranus’ moons might be able to support life. Here’s what a mission might reveal

For sure, it was a far-reaching recommendation: The planet Uranus and its moons should be NASA’s highest-priority new flagship mission for startup in the decade 2023-2032. The proposed mission, known as Uranus Orbiter and Probe (UOP), would conduct a multiyear orbital tour to yield knowledge of ice giants in general and the Uranus system in … Read more