News Uranus Takes A Pounding More Frequently Than Thought

BigCatDaddy · 10-13-2011, 07:39 AM

http://dvice.com/archives/2011/10/we-now-know-why.php

Uranus isn't just gassy, it's also tilted completely sideways, such that instead of rotating like a spinning top, it rolls around the plane of the solar system more like a giant ball. Now astronomers think they know how this happened, and it means that Uranus has been pounded really, really hard not once, but twice.

Uranus' axial tilt of 98 degrees means that it's got one pole pointed almost directly at the sun, and one pole pointed out into space. As the planet revolves around the sun, these poles slowly switch places, meaning that if you lived there, you'd get 42 years of sunlight followed by 42 years of darkness, with a short time in between where things would seem almost normal.

Needless to say, this sort of behavior is a bit strange for Uranus, although nobody's quite been able to determine how it happened. New simulations from astronomers at the Observatory of Côte d'Azur in Nice, France may have just figured it out, and the answer seems to be that Uranus has suffered from not one but two giant impacts.

The only reliable way to change the tilt of one planet is to smash it with another planet of comparable size. While planets running into other planets isn't something that happens very often nowadays, back in the tempestuous youth of the solar system, it was relatively common: a planet the size of Mars hitting Earth four and a half billion years ago probably blasted off enough stuff to form the moon, for example. But with Uranus, one collision big enough to knock the entire planet sideways would also have screwed up Uranus' system of moons, which isn't the case.

Replacing that one big impact with two slightly smaller impacts, though, works out perfectly. Each impact would have involved a planet the size of the Earth punching into Uranus several billion years ago, early enough that Uranus' moons could still have made it into their current orbits. Interestingly, an impact of about the same size is also thought to have happened to Neptune, which is making astronomers wonder whether the model they have for the formation of the outer planets is quite right. It's always been assumed that way out around Uranus and Neptune, things were pretty chill, with the gas giants slowly forming by sweeping up gas and dust in their orbits. But if these latest impact simulations are correct, it implies that the outer solar system was a much more violent place than we ever thought.

lcarus · 10-13-2011, 07:41 AM

Dave Lane · 10-13-2011, 07:56 AM

Cool deal

KILLER_CLOWN · 10-13-2011, 07:59 AM

www.thunderbolts.info

**Gonzo** · 10-13-2011, 08:39 AM

I'd think Uranus would break apart after getting hit so hard. It just shows how tough Uranus really is.
Posted via Mobile Device

tooge · 10-13-2011, 08:54 AM

Uranus got pounded so much it became gassy?

BigCatDaddy · 10-13-2011, 08:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tooge

Uranus got pounded so much it became gassy?

And the sumbitch got turned sideways.

**Gonzo** · 10-13-2011, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tooge

Uranus got pounded so much it became gassy?

Doesn't Uranus always get gassy after it get's pounded?

talastan · 10-13-2011, 09:13 AM

I thought this was another Claythan thread. I was getting ready to warn people......

tooge · 10-13-2011, 09:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gonzo

Doesn't Uranus always get gassy after it get's pounded?

If you pound chili uranus gets gassy, that I know.

Detoxing · 10-13-2011, 10:12 AM

Uranus was fun say in 1st grade. Still fun to this day.

Radar Chief · 10-13-2011, 10:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Detoxing

Uranus was fun say in 1st grade. Still fun to this day.

Q: What does toilet paper have in common with the star ship Enterprise?
A: They both circle Uranus searching for Klingons.

That’s all I got.

loochy · 10-13-2011, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Radar Chief

Q: What does toilet paper have in common with the star ship Enterprise?
A: They both circle Uranus searching for Klingons.

That’s all I got.

STUPID! Klingons aren't anywhere near Uranus! Their homeworld, Qo'noS, was first visited by Humans in 2151. It is about four days away from Sol at warp 4.5.

**bevischief** · 10-13-2011, 12:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gonzo

Doesn't Uranus always get gassy after it get's pounded?

Detoxing · 10-13-2011, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loochy

STUPID! Klingons aren't anywhere near Uranus! Their homeworld, Qo'noS, was first visited by Humans in 2151. It is about four days away from Sol at warp 4.5.

****ing noobs don't know anything...

10-13-2011, 07:39 AM
BigCatDaddy The doctor of style Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Parts Unknown Casino cash: $1026905	Uranus Takes A Pounding More Frequently Than Thought http://dvice.com/archives/2011/10/we-now-know-why.php Uranus isn't just gassy, it's also tilted completely sideways, such that instead of rotating like a spinning top, it rolls around the plane of the solar system more like a giant ball. Now astronomers think they know how this happened, and it means that Uranus has been pounded really, really hard not once, but twice. Uranus' axial tilt of 98 degrees means that it's got one pole pointed almost directly at the sun, and one pole pointed out into space. As the planet revolves around the sun, these poles slowly switch places, meaning that if you lived there, you'd get 42 years of sunlight followed by 42 years of darkness, with a short time in between where things would seem almost normal. Needless to say, this sort of behavior is a bit strange for Uranus, although nobody's quite been able to determine how it happened. New simulations from astronomers at the Observatory of Côte d'Azur in Nice, France may have just figured it out, and the answer seems to be that Uranus has suffered from not one but two giant impacts. The only reliable way to change the tilt of one planet is to smash it with another planet of comparable size. While planets running into other planets isn't something that happens very often nowadays, back in the tempestuous youth of the solar system, it was relatively common: a planet the size of Mars hitting Earth four and a half billion years ago probably blasted off enough stuff to form the moon, for example. But with Uranus, one collision big enough to knock the entire planet sideways would also have screwed up Uranus' system of moons, which isn't the case. Replacing that one big impact with two slightly smaller impacts, though, works out perfectly. Each impact would have involved a planet the size of the Earth punching into Uranus several billion years ago, early enough that Uranus' moons could still have made it into their current orbits. Interestingly, an impact of about the same size is also thought to have happened to Neptune, which is making astronomers wonder whether the model they have for the formation of the outer planets is quite right. It's always been assumed that way out around Uranus and Neptune, things were pretty chill, with the gas giants slowly forming by sweeping up gas and dust in their orbits. But if these latest impact simulations are correct, it implies that the outer solar system was a much more violent place than we ever thought.
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10-13-2011, 07:41 AM	#2
lcarus Everybody Lies. Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: 22 Acacia Avenue Casino cash: $55789	Heh
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10-13-2011, 07:56 AM	#3
Dave Lane Space Cadet Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Kansas City, Mo, USA Casino cash: $2197504	Cool deal __________________ Matt Cassel - 58.9 completion %, 13,495 yards, 82 TD, 57 INT, 24 Fumbles, 80.4 Passer Rating Alex Smith - 59.3 completion %, 14,280 yards, 81 TD, 63 INT, 36 Fumbles, 79.1 Passer Rating Do you realize the backups we have to this second coming of Matt Cassel have NEVER EVER thrown a regular season pass.
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10-13-2011, 07:59 AM	#4
KILLER_CLOWN Be HEALED!!!!!!! Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Fascist State Casino cash: $11108927	www.thunderbolts.info __________________ "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father ... And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." "If the people let government decide what foods they eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as are the souls of those who live under tyranny." - Thomas Jefferson
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10-13-2011, 08:39 AM	#5
Gonzo The Turtle Can't Help Us. Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: F'ing Huskerville Casino cash: $108270081	I'd think Uranus would break apart after getting hit so hard. It just shows how tough Uranus really is. Posted via Mobile Device
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10-13-2011, 08:54 AM	#6
tooge MVP Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Liberty, MO Casino cash: $74294	Uranus got pounded so much it became gassy?
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10-13-2011, 09:13 AM	#9
talastan Manning, we're coming for you! Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Springfield, Mo Casino cash: $35172	I thought this was another Claythan thread. I was getting ready to warn people...... __________________ Can we please just draft AND DEVELOP a QB - est. since 1983 Check out my band: Truett and the Traitors
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10-13-2011, 10:12 AM	#11
Detoxing Dyslexic Speed Reader Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Diego Casino cash: $449738801	Uranus was fun say in 1st grade. Still fun to this day.
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