this post was submitted on 20 Jul 2025
128 points (97.8% liked)

science

20736 readers
940 users here now

A community to post scientific articles, news, and civil discussion.

rule #1: be kind

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 

A new analysis of decades' worth of observations has revealed that Uranus does indeed emit more heat than it receives from the rays of the Sun.

top 19 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Asidonhopo@lemmy.world 31 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Obligatory, "why, thank you"

If it's producing more heat than a standard world that size would (I'm assuming compared to Neptune), perhaps it's due to the composition of the rogue body that collided with it in the distant past to give it its axial tilt. Considering how profoundly, anomolously large the current 20km interstellar object 3I Atlas is, its reasonable to assume interstellar objects are larger and more common in general than theory would suggest. Perhaps something interstellar and truly exotic slammed into Uranus in the distant past, maybe studying its oldest moons would give some clues as to what.

[–] phdepressed@sh.itjust.works 15 points 2 weeks ago

It's actually less heat emitting than the other giant planets.

[–] wabafee@lemmy.world 1 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

I feel bad whoever slam in to Uranus in the distant past. /s

[–] AmidFuror@fedia.io 26 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

I read recently that Uranus has also become a much lighter color than in initial observations. It's almost as if Uranus has been bleached.

[–] fahfahfahfah@lemmy.billiam.net 14 points 2 weeks ago

It hasn’t become that color, it always was that color, we just didn’t take good pictures of it

[–] ColeSloth@discuss.tchncs.de 21 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

I'm confused. The title suggests it's hotter than anticipated, but the articles contents suggest that it's not as hot as it should be. It's emitting less heat than the other giant planets. Not more.

Now I understand that this means it's losing heat at a slower rate, but wouldn't it likely have to be colder than expected to begin with in order to it be losing it at a slower rate than the others?

[–] lemming@sh.itjust.works 9 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

The headline is horrible (haven't read the actual article). As I undrstamd the topic, Uranus radiates more heat than previously measured, but still less than our models suggest it should.

[–] Swedneck@discuss.tchncs.de 8 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

is it some sort of fucking law that headlines have to be dogshit?

[–] lemming@sh.itjust.works 5 points 2 weeks ago

Seems so. In the few media I'm slightly more familiar with, the headlines are written by someone else with the aim of drawing in more readers and the authors of the articles themselves have no control over it.

[–] MysteriousSophon21@lemmy.world 4 points 2 weeks ago

The article is confusingly worded but the new finding is that Uranus DOES emit more heat than it absorbs from the Sun (unlike previous measurements suggested), but still emits less excess heat than the other gas giants - it's both "hotter than it should be" yet "cooler than expected" compared to similar planets.

[–] Wazowski@lemmy.world 21 points 2 weeks ago

Especially after a vindaloo.

[–] TheScooterKing@piefed.social 17 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] baronvonj@lemmy.world 4 points 2 weeks ago

You can derelicht Uranus.

[–] SonOfAntenora@lemmy.world 14 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Stupid me and weird titles.

This conclusion, arrived at by two independent teams of scientists, finally resolves a puzzle that first emerged when Voyager 2 cruised past the stinky planet all the way back in 1986. Those observations suggested that Uranus was not emitting any excess heat – a finding that put it at odds with all the other giant planets in the Solar System.

They know what they're doing

[–] henfredemars@infosec.pub 12 points 2 weeks ago

It’s the weather.

[–] Hobbes_Dent@lemmy.world 10 points 2 weeks ago

That’s true no matter which way this thread goes.

[–] realitista@lemmus.org 10 points 2 weeks ago
[–] devilish666@lemmy.world 5 points 2 weeks ago

i guess this means that a nuclear process occurs in its interior?

i.e. uranium decay releases heat or sth