Uranus finally shows its powerful cyclone hidden at the North Pole for decades
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[EN VIDÉO] Uranus, the first planet discovered by telescope Discover Uranus, an ice giant located three billion kilometers away…
Uranus may appear to be just a huge ball of rather quiet gas. Still, the Voyager mission had already revealed a few swirling features on the side of its south pole. However, the measurements cannot confirm the presence of a polar cyclone.
But new observations made using the VLA (Very Large Array) shed new light on the question today. Taking advantage of the planet’s favorable position in its orbit, the installation’s 28 radio telescopes have indeed revealed to astronomers the warmer and drier air that has been hiding so far under the clouds of the north pole of Uranus. The characteristics of a powerful cyclone.
The researchers note that this cyclone looks very similar to those spotted by the Cassini mission on the side of Saturn. And it is added to those already observed on the poles of all the planets of our Solar System presenting a substantial atmosphere. Whether telluric or gaseous.
In the years to come, astronomers will be watching this newly discovered cyclone closely in hopes of learning a little more about it.
