Microwave Hoods (Over Range)
The climate of Uranus is heavily influenced by both its lack of internal heat, which limits atmospheric activity, and by its extreme axial tilt, which induces extreme seasonal variation. more...
Uranus' atmosphere is remarkably bland in comparison to the other gas giants, even to Neptune, which it otherwise closely resembles. When Voyager 2 flew by Uranus in 1986, it observed a total of ten cloud features across the entire planet.
One proposed explanation for this dearth of cloud features is that Uranus' internal heat appears markedly lower than that of the other giant planets; in astronomical terms, it has a low thermal flux. Why Uranus' internal temperature is so low is still not understood. Neptune, which is Uranus' near twin in size and composition, radiates 2.61 times as much energy into space as it receives from the Sun. Uranus, by contrast, radiates hardly any excess heat at all. The total power radiated by Uranus in the far infrared (i.e. heat) part of the spectrum is 1.06 ± 0.08 times the solar energy absorbed in its atmosphere. In fact, Uranus' heat flux is only 0.042 ± 0.047 W/m², which is lower than the internal heat flux of Earth of about 0.075 W/m². The lowest temperature recorded in Uranus' tropopause is 49 K (−224 °C), making Uranus the coldest planet in the Solar System, colder than Neptune.
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