Scientific research. A cyclone in the atmosphere of Uranus

Uranus differs from other planets in the solar system in one respect – it rotates almost horizontally relative to its orbit. For this reason, exploring some of its regions is difficult for an terrestrial observer, especially since the planet stays with one side facing us for a long time. Since 2015, however, scientists have had a good view of the north pole of the planet, which they decided to use to look at its atmosphere.

The study, published in Geophysical Research Letters, was conducted with the Very Large Array of radio telescopes in New Mexico, the authors said. Scientists have analyzed the waves coming from the atmosphere of Uranus, deep beneath the ice giant’s clouds. The data was collected in 2015, 2021 and 2022. As the researchers emphasize, so far no one has looked so deep into the planet’s atmosphere.

Observations revealed that the air at the North Pole swirls, and also appears to be warmer and drier than neighboring air masses – hallmarks of a strong cyclone.

“These observations tell us a lot about Uranus,” said lead author Alex Akins of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. NASA. – It’s a much more dynamic world than you might think, and not just a blue gas ball. There’s a lot going on below the surface.

Cyclones are relatively common in the solar system – they have been identified on every planet except Mercury, which does not have a thick, active atmosphere. On Uranus, they were observed by the Voyager 2 probe, which recorded a vortex motion at the south pole. However, Voyager’s measurements did not show the typical cyclone temperature change.

A dense, warm, dry cyclone on Uranus is similar to those spotted by the Cassini spacecraft on Saturn. Unlike our hurricanes and typhoons, these phenomena do not form over water (none of the planets have liquid water) and do not drift, but are locked at the poles. Scientists plan to observe how the newly discovered cyclone on Uranus will change over time.

“The fact that we’re still learning such basic things about how Uranus’s atmosphere works makes me want to learn as much as I can about this mysterious planet,” added Akins.

Uranus is the seventh planet of the solar system. This ice giant takes 84 Earth years to orbit the sun. Its axis of rotation is tilted at 98 degrees relative to its orbit. This contributes to the occurrence of extreme seasons – the poles of the planet experience many years of constant sunlight followed by the same number of years of total darkness. In 2028, the summer solstice will occur at the North Pole. When Voyager 2 visited Uranus in 1986, it was able to observe summer at the planet’s south pole. Now this part is on the unlit side.