The 98° Tilted Planet
Uranus Uranus is the third biggest planet in the solar system. This planet rotates at a nearly 90-degree angle from the plane of its orbit. This unique tilt makes Uranus look like a rolling ball. Uranus was discovered in 1781 by astronomer William Herschel. After two years the object was universally accepted as a new planet. Distance from the sun: 2.871 billion km Discovered: 13 March 1781 Orbital period: 84 years Surface area: 8.083 billion km² Planet type: Ice giant Formation The Uranus was formed when gravity pulled swirling gasses and ice giants to form a huge ice giant, about 4.5 billion years ago. It took its fixed position about 4 billion years ago. This picture shows Uranus surrounded by its four major rings and by 10 of its moons. This image has colors added to show the different altitudes and thicknesses of clouds in the atmosphere. Green and blue areas show where the atmosphere is clear and sunlight can get through. The ...