Neptune is a planet of many wonders. From high winds to cold temperatures, it is also a very peculiar planet. Almost everything about it is different than the other planets. For example, its moon, Triton, is one of only three known moons that have atmospheres. Also, Neptune has clouds that are made of ammonia and ammonia hydrosulfate. Sometimes, Pluto is in front of Neptune. Neptune creates two times the energy that it gets from the sun. Not counting Pluto, Neptune is the farthest planet from the sun. Basically, Neptune is a planet that is interesting and weird planet. Neptune is the eighth planet from the sun. Its day is sixteen hours and seventeen minutes long. It is the fourth largest planet in the solar system. Neptune is three and nine tenths times bigger than earth. It is smaller but more massive than Uranus. Its diameter is 49,528km and it is 30,775sqmi. Its density is 1.6 Grams per square centimeter. Neptune is not perpendicular to its orbit. It is 4.5billion kilometers from the sun. Therefore, it cannot be seen by a telescope. Every 248 years, for twenty years, Pluto is closer to the sun than Neptune. Neptune was named after the Roman god of the sea.
Neptune’s position was predicted by two astronomers and mathematicians. Their names were Urbain J.J. Le Verrier and John C Adams. Adams was an English astronomer and mathematician whose equations got rejected in 1844 by George B Airy because Airy did not have trust in him. Le Verrier was a French astronomer and mathematician. His equations were similar to Adams’s. His were read and tested by Johann G Gale. He became the first person to observe and study the planet. Later, Le Verrier thought that he should name the planet and it should be named after him. France had a problem with this. They thought they had the right to name the planet. Also, England was arguing because Adams was an Englishman and they thought they also had the right. This dispute went on until it was named Neptune after the Roman sea god. Neptune is known for its high speed latitudinal winds. These are caused by an internal heat source. Latitudinal winds are winds that move with the planet’s x axis. Some of these latitudinal winds reach up to a bone breaking 700 miles per hour, the fastest in the solar system. These winds sometimes create storms. For example, the Great Dark Spot which was a storm half the size of the Earth. It rotated as fast as 2000kmph. The storm was obviously a big storm especially compared to Earth’s storms. The storm suddenly disappeared in 1994, though.
Neptune has a magnetic field. However, Neptune does not have molten iron, cobalt or nickel in its core as Earth does. This is possible because the pressure is high enough to make water a conductor. Neptune’s magnetic field is twenty times bigger than its own radius. Neptune’s magnetic field is offset from its core. Also, it is also tilted 47degrees. Neptune has a temperature of -355degrees Fahrenheit or -215degreesCelsius. It has an internal heat source. This internal heat source supplies Neptune with the radiation twice as strong as the energy that it gets from the sun. Neptune gets 1/9% of the sun light that Earth. It has been compared to a dark cathedral on a cloudy day. Neptune has a dense core of rock and ice. More towards the surface, Neptune’s mantle is made up mostly of liquid Hydrogen. With at least -252.8 °C, it is cold enough to knock a person dead. The atmosphere consists of Hydrogen, Helium and Methane. This is thought to be because when the sun was formed, the denser compounds stayed closer to the sun than lighter compounds. There are white clouds of ammonia and ammonia hydrosulfate. These deadly-to-human compounds are just sitting there in large amounts. Some of these white clouds might be plumes which are columns of smoke or ice crystals.
Neptune has an incomplete ring system. Instead of the whole rings, it has arcs that clump up at certain points and thin at certain points. Neptune has three prominent rings and one faint ring. Adams is the outermost ring. It consists of three bright arcs which are named Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity. Next are Galatea and an unnamed ring. They co-orbit each other. Le Verrier is the innermost ring. It consists of Lassel and Argo. The rings are thought to consist of dust and rock. This is not very reflective, and, as a result, the rings are not very bright. Neptune has thirteen known moons. Their names are S/2002 N4. Of all these moons, the most interesting and bizarre is Triton. First off, Triton’s orbit is retrograde to the planets rotation. This suggests that it was captured by Neptune, or became hit by a massive celestial object. Triton is one of three known moons to have an atmosphere. Triton’s atmosphere is made chiefly of a thin Nitrogen atmosphere. The wonders of Neptune are many; the winds, the energy, the satellites, the peculiar behaviors and many more. People still have not uncovered all its wonders and mysteries. Yet, they are going to try and learn as much as they can. The more people learn, the more they will know.
