URANUS


The Planet Uranus was discovered on March 13, 1781, by Sir William Herschel.
He noticed that it was moving slowly through the constellation Gemini.



Seasons of Uranus are extreme: when the Sun rises at its north pole, it stays up for 42 Earth years; then it sets and the north pole is in darkness for 42 Earth years.

Uranus has 15 moons.

A year on Uranus would last 84 years.

Since it was the first new planet found, Herschel had the honor of naming it so Herschel's Planet became Georgium Sidus (George's Star) after King George III of England. After the astronomer's death the planet was changed to Uranus as suggested by German astronomer Johann Bode. He thought that since Saturn was Jupiter's father then the next outward planet should be called Saturn's father, Uranus. Uranus is the only planet called by a Greek name rather than a Roman name, however, most of the moons of the various planets are named from Greek mythology.

A bizarre feature is how far over Uranus is tipped. Its north pole -- representing the planet's axis of rotation -- lies 98 degrees from being directly up and down to its orbit plane, which means the planet is essentially on its side in relation to the Sun. Thus, its seasons are extreme: when the Sun rises at its north pole, it stays up for 42 Earth years; then it sets and the north pole is in darkness for 42 Earth years.

__________________
Devil-may-care