Changes in Uranus’ Atmosphere
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Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach in collaboration with NASA’s Universe of Learning partners: Caltech/IPAC, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Video imagery:
- Hubble images of Uranus, 2002-2022: NASA, ESA, Erich Karkoschka (LPL)
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Photos of planets, galaxies and nebulas scroll down the screen.
Text: NEWS FROM THE UNIVERSE.
Text: NEWS FROM THE UNIVERSE.
April 11, 2025. Changes in Uranus's Atmosphere.
Side by Side photos of Uranus from 2002, 2012, 2015, and 2022. The planet is a pale greenish blue with some lighter stripes. The last two have a light round spot on the right side.
Text: NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has chronicled a 20-year story of seasonal changes at the planet Uranus, from 2002 to 2022.
Side by Side photos of Uranus from 2002, 2012, 2015, and 2022. The planet is a pale greenish blue with some lighter stripes. The last two have a light round spot on the right side.
Text: NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has chronicled a 20-year story of seasonal changes at the planet Uranus, from 2002 to 2022.
A chart shows the images of Uranus in visible light, visible and near infrared, in a gray that shows aerosols and haze, and another gray that shows methane depletion.
Text: The planet is tipped on its side, so its northern pole appears on the right in these images. Hubble observations show the planet's northern hemisphere moving through spring toward a summer solstice in 2030. Close up of the visible and near infrared versions of the images. They have sections of blue and sections of green, with the version from 2002 with a green round section on the left, and the last two with a green round section on the right side.
All four of the images have solid bright red edges. Text: Green areas indicate less methane than blue areas. Red areas, including the stratosphere, show no methane. The gray aerosols and haze images. They show dark and light gray stripes on the images of the planet. The areas that appeared as lighter round sections on the infrared appear darker here.
Text: Scientists also observed the planet's changing aerosol haze. Bright areas indicate cloudier conditions, while the dark areas represent clear skies. The four different types of images in the chart appear again.
Text: Hubble's long-term observations of Uranus and other Solar System planets provide valuable insight into the weather on other worlds, and can serve as a model for exoplanets around other stars.
This news was brought to you in part by the SPACE TELESCOPE SCIENCE INSTITUTE IN BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.
Text: The planet is tipped on its side, so its northern pole appears on the right in these images. Hubble observations show the planet's northern hemisphere moving through spring toward a summer solstice in 2030. Close up of the visible and near infrared versions of the images. They have sections of blue and sections of green, with the version from 2002 with a green round section on the left, and the last two with a green round section on the right side.
All four of the images have solid bright red edges. Text: Green areas indicate less methane than blue areas. Red areas, including the stratosphere, show no methane. The gray aerosols and haze images. They show dark and light gray stripes on the images of the planet. The areas that appeared as lighter round sections on the infrared appear darker here.
Text: Scientists also observed the planet's changing aerosol haze. Bright areas indicate cloudier conditions, while the dark areas represent clear skies. The four different types of images in the chart appear again.
Text: Hubble's long-term observations of Uranus and other Solar System planets provide valuable insight into the weather on other worlds, and can serve as a model for exoplanets around other stars.
This news was brought to you in part by the SPACE TELESCOPE SCIENCE INSTITUTE IN BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.