Stunning new images released by NASA on Monday detail new images of Uranus, revealing a stunning look at its bright rings and a rarely seen feature.
The photographs, taken by NASA’s high-powered James Webb Space Telescope, captured the icy planet along with its multiple inner and outer rings, nine of its 27 known moons and a seasonal polar cap.
The new images offer a rare glimpse of the “elusive” Zeta ring, an extremely faint and diffuse ring closest to the planet, shown in reddish brown.
Many other rings were captured in brilliant blue.
The Webb telescope also took snapshots of atmospheric events on the icy planet, including Uranus’ seasonal north pole cloud cover and several nearby storms.
The images of Uranus were captured by the high-powered James Webb Space Telescope. NASA The images offer a rarely seen view of Uranus’ faint inner Zeta ring and captured several of the planet’s moons. POT
The polar cap becomes more pronounced as Uranus’s pole moves toward the sun as it approaches the solstice and receives more sunlight. The planet’s next solstice will be in 2028.
Uranus has the most extreme seasons in the solar system because it rotates on its side with an inclination of about 98 degrees, according to NASA. While the sun shines on one pole, the other pole is plunged into a dark winter that lasts 21 years.
“With Webb’s unmatched infrared resolution and sensitivity, astronomers now see Uranus and its unique features with groundbreaking clarity,” NASA said. “These details, especially those of the nearby Zeta ring, will be invaluable in planning future missions to Uranus.”
Uranus has the most extreme seasons in the solar system. POT
NASA also said the planet and new images of it will help its scientists study nearly 2,000 exoplanets of similar size discovered in recent decades.
“This ‘exoplanet in our backyard’ can help astronomers understand how planets of this size work, what their meteorology is like, and how they formed,” the government agency said. “This, in turn, can help us understand our own solar system as a whole, putting it in a broader context.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn