This is a drawing which illustrates the composition of the atmosphere of Uranus relative to possibilities for other planets.
Click on image for full size
An Overview of Uranus' Atmospheric Composition
Unlike Saturn and Jupiter, where the atmosphere is mostly hydrogen and helium, the atmosphere of Uranus contains a greater percentage of the more complex
gases, such as methane. There are clouds of methane ice low in the
troposphere. Present also in large percentages are very sophisticated atmospheric constituents such as ethane gas, acetylene, and diacetylene. These form
hazes high in the upper atmosphere.
One of the reasons these are the primary constituents of the atmosphere of Uranus is that Uranus evolved from the more sophisticated hydrocarbons and ices rather than solely from hydrogen and helium.
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The methane cloud deck of Uranus is found low in the troposphere. The methane clouds are the only clouds to be found on Uranus. The location of the clouds is predicted based upon the temperature at which
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Besides methane, Uranus' atmosphere contains more sophisticated atmospheric molecules such as ethane gas, acetylene, and diacetylene. All these molecules form layers of haze at different altitudes high
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The clouds of Uranus, composed of methane crystals, are found very low in the troposphere, and are difficult to distinquish below the smog haz es of the planet's atmosphere. False color is used, in the
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The position of the planets in the solar nebula greatly affected their 1. size and 2. composition. This is because of the effect of how cold it was in the nebula. 1. The nebula was a lot warmer close to
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The mesosphere of Uranus is a region of balance between warming and cooling. That essentially means that nothing happens there. Except for diffusion, the atmosphere is still. Upper reaches of the atmosphere,
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As on Earth, the atmosphere of Uranus consists of a troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere. The troposphere is the region where the visible clouds are to be found. The stratosphere, as
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On Uranus, as on Jupiter, the winds in the belts and zones blow first in one direction, then in the opposite direction. Wind blows east in a belt, and west in a zone. The clouds rise up in a belt, and
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