Neptune took shape when the rest of the solar system formed about 4.5 billion years ago when gravity pulled swirling gas and dust in to become this ice giant. Like its neighbor Uranus, Neptune likely formed closer to the Sun and moved to the outer solar system about 4 billion years ago.

Meanwhile, materials we are used to seeing as ice, liquid, or gas settled in the outer regions of the young solar system. Gravity pulled these materials together, and that is where we find gas giants Jupiter and Saturn, and the ice giants Uranus and Neptune.

2018年1月17日 · Beyond Saturn are two of the most misunderstood and bizarre planets in our solar system—the “ice giants” Uranus and Neptune. Did you know that Uranus has rings and appears to spin on its side? And that windy and intensely blue Neptune once had an Earth-sized Great Dark Spot?

We believe many important atmospheric science questions can only be addressed by studies of the ice giants Uranus and Neptune. These questions relate to fundamental atmospheric processes that help us understand the formation, evolution, and current structure of all planets.

2000年10月26日 · Recent revision of the Jupiter and Saturn data has led scientists to reexamine the data from all the outer planets and has revealed that the gas giant planets' main compositions are almost identical to that of the Sun.

As a gas giant, Jupiter doesn’t have a true surface. The planet is mostly swirling gases and liquids. While a spacecraft would have nowhere to land on Jupiter, it wouldn’t be able to fly through unscathed either.

Uranus took shape when the rest of the solar system formed about 4.5 billion years ago – when gravity pulled swirling gas and dust in to become this ice giant. Like its neighbor Neptune, Uranus likely formed closer to the Sun and moved to the outer solar system about 4 billion years ago, where it is the seventh planet from the Sun.

2025年1月9日 · Collectively, Uranus and Neptune are referred to as ice giant planets. In spite of that name, relatively little solid ice is thought to be in them today, but it is believed there is a massive liquid ocean beneath their clouds, which accounts for about two-thirds of their total mass.

Saturn took shape when the rest of the solar system formed about 4.5 billion years ago when gravity pulled swirling gas and dust in to become this gas giant. About 4 billion years ago, Saturn settled into its current position in the outer solar system, where it is the sixth planet from the Sun.

It is recommended that probe missions to the giant planets be performed to help constrain models of solar system formation and the origin and evolution of atmospheres, to provide a basis for comparative studies of the gas and ice giants, and to provide a valuable link to extrasolar planetary systems