Neptune (Meaning and Explanation)

We explain everything about the planet Neptune, its discovery, structure, atmosphere and climate. Also, its rings and satellites.

What is the planet Neptune?

Neptune It is the eighth planet in the Solar System counting from the Sun, and the largest quarter. It is part of the so-called outer planets, or gaseous planets. It has 5 faint rings composed of dust and rocks, 14 satellites or “moons” and Its mass is equivalent to 17 times that of the Earth.

Neptune is located at a distance from the Sun of 4.03 hours at the speed of light, and It is the furthest planet of the luminous star. It takes 16 hours to complete its rotation movement (Neptunian day) and 165 Earth years to complete the complete orbit around the Sun (Neptunian year). In 2011 it completed its first orbit since its discovery in 1846.

In astrology, Neptune represents a “spiritual” or “inspirational” planet, and is identified with the symbol ♆, a trident in honor of the god of the sea and the ocean. Hence the origin of its name from the Roman god “Neptune” (the same god that the Greeks called “Poseidon”).

Discovery of Neptune

Neptune It was officially discovered on September 23, 1846 and was the first planet located through mathematical predictions rather than astronomical observations of the sky.

Around 1839, the French astronomer and mathematician Urbain Le Verrier (1811-1877) undertook a vast mathematical study that allowed him to establish all the variations in the orbits of the planets in the Solar System. He was able to verify that planetary orbits behaved in accordance with Kepler's laws and Newton's gravitational theory, but there was one exception: the planet Uranus.

Structure of Neptune

planet neptune structure layers atmosphere — Neptune's atmosphere is a thick layer of hydrocarbon gases.

Neptune's internal structure is similar to that of its neighboring planet, Uranus. It has a rocky core covered by a frozen mantle, which is in turn under a thick and thick atmosphere:

Core Neptune's core is composed of iron, nickel and silicates with a mass greater than the core of planet Earth. The pressure at the center of the core is approximately double that at the center of our planet.
Mantle Neptune's mantle is equivalent to about 15 times the mass of our planet and is a vast ocean of water, ammonia and methane. A very curious characteristic of this mantle is that at a depth of 7000 kilometers the methane decomposes into diamond crystals that rain towards the solid core like a kind of hail. Neptune is a planet where it literally rains diamonds.
Atmosphere Neptune's atmosphere is made up of hydrocarbon gases such as methane, ethane and acetylene. It is subdivided into two main regions: the lower region (troposphere), where temperature decreases with altitude, and the upper region (stratosphere), where temperature increases with altitude.

Neptune's atmosphere

Neptune's atmosphere It was formed from ice and complex molecules unlike Saturn and Jupiter, which formed from simple molecules (such as hydrogen and helium).

Neptune's atmosphere is similar to that of Uranus, presenting a greater number of complex molecules such as methane gas, ethane gas, acetylene and diacetylene. These gases they form veils of fog at high altitudes in the upper atmosphere and clouds of frozen methane in the lower parts of the atmosphere.

In 1989, the Voyager 2 space probe discovered a “great dark spot” (similar to Jupiter's “red spot”), a huge storm surrounded by white layers of frozen methane. The most recent views of Neptune from the Hubble Space Telescope indicate that the spot has disappeared over time.

Neptune Climate

Neptune's climate It is characterized by average temperatures of -353º F (-214º C) and enormous storms with winds up to eight times stronger than the most powerful hurricane ever recorded on our planet.

These supersonic winds can reach 2,000 kilometers per hour, equivalent to the maximum speed of the F/A-18 Hornet, one of the fastest fighters in the North American Air Force.

Neptune is so far away receives a thousand times less sunlight than Earth. It is still a mystery how Neptune obtains the energy for such intensity of weather, although it is believed to be due to the planet's great internal heat (Neptune radiates 2.61 times more energy than it receives from the Sun).

Neptune Satellites

neptune triton satellites — Triton has 99% of the mass in orbit around Neptune.

Until now 14 satellites of Neptune are known who have been baptized with names of minor deities from Greco-Roman mythology. The most important is Triton which has 99% of the mass in orbit around Neptune.

Triton was discovered by the British William Lassell (1799-1880) a few days after the discovery of Neptune and it is the only satellite large enough to have a spheroid shape.

Neptune Rings

Neptune's rings were discovered in 1984 and they bear the names of astronomers who made important contributions to the knowledge of the planet. These rings would have formed when one of Neptune's moons was destroyed.

These are very tenuous rings because are mainly composed of dust and rock (which do not reflect good amounts of light). They are quite a bit darker than Saturn's rings (which are made up mostly of ice, and do reflect a lot of light).

Neptune's rings are divided into two categories: on the one hand the inner rings called Galle, Le Verrier, Lassell and Arago, and on the other hand the Adams ring, which is the only outer ring. Adams is also distinguished by having five arches that are brighter than the rest of the ring, called Courage, Liberty, Fraternity and Equality 1 and 2.

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