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In 1776, the Solar System as we knew it lacked some important members: Uranus and Neptune! Only six planets were recognized at the time. Although Uranus and Neptune had been spotted over a hundred years prior, astronomers, including Galileo, had misidentified them as stars.

Technology has come a long way in the last 250 years, and one could argue that nowhere is it clearer than in astronomy. Telescopes at that time were powerful, yes, but now we have up-close, detailed images taken by the Voyager 2 spacecraft. Images taken on its flybys in the 1980s, and by other satellites around Earth, show that these distant and icy giants have rings and a magnetosphere. But there is still more to learn!

In its recent Planetary Decadal Survey, the National Academy of Sciences shared a Uranus orbiter and probe mission as a top recommendation. If NASA develops such a flagship mission, it could become just the second spacecraft to approach Uranus.

Relevant Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) include: 4.5, 6.2, ES.2, USII.9