Neptune BY ALYSSA

~Neptune is so faraway that it took the space probe Voyager 2-12 years to reach it. Facts About Neptune

~Neptune orbits the sun once every 165 years.

~Neptune has an atmosphere of hydrogen, helium, methane and ammonia.

~Neptune has three rings similar to Jupiter. They are named Adams, Leverrier and Galle after the two individuals that predicted its existence and the one who actually found. about:blank

~Neptune has one large moon, Triton, and seven smaller moons that are not much bigger than asteroids. Triton is nearly the size of our moon, but rotates in the opposite direction of the rotation of Neptune.

~The smaller moons are Naiad, Thalassa, Despina, Galatea, Larissa,and Proteus. The moons are all named after Greek gods and such of the sea.

In many ways, Neptune is similar to Jupiter. It is comprised primarily of hydrogen and has a very active atmosphere. Winds can reach over 1,200 miles per hour and storms are frequent. In fact, Neptune has a big blue spot similar to the red spot storm found on Jupiter. Neptune also has faint rings similar to those found on Jupiter, but much less impressive than those found on Saturn.

Equatorial Diameter: 49,528 km Polar Diameter: 48,680 km Density: 1.64 g/cm3 Volume: 60 earth-volumes. Chemical Composition: molecular hydrogen, methane and helium Revolution Time: 165 years Rotation Time: hrs Number Of Moons: 8 Discovered In: 28 December 1612 Named After: Roman God of sea Distance From Earth: 4.4 billion km Planetary Expeditions: NASA's Voyager 2, 1989

Distance From Earth: 4.4 billion km Planetary Expeditions: NASA's Voyager 2, 198 Equatorial Diameter: 49,528 km Polar Diameter: 48,680 km Density: 1.64 g/

The discovery of Neptune was a unique event. Its very existence was first determined through a t were noted, nobody accurately predicted the caus e. heoretical calculation, not by being observed. The first facts giving rise to the possibility of Neptune’s existence, were gravitational imbalances in the orbit of Uranus.

In 1843, John Couch Adams theorized the cause could be an eighth planet. Independently, Urbain Le Verrier reached the same conclusion in It wasn’t until Johann Galle read Verrier’s prediction that Neptune was found.

Like Jupiter, Saturn and Uranus, Neptune is a gas giant. It is, however, the smallest one in the solar system. Although it is traditionally reported that the planet is the eight from the Sun, this isn’t always true. Pluto has an elliptical orbit, which means it occasionally is closer to the Sun than Neptune. This only occurs, however, during relatively brief periods.

. Neptune is a large planet, nearly four times the size of Earth Neptune suffers the most violent weather in our Solar System. Storms have been spotted swirling around its surface and freezing winds that blow about ten times faster than hurricanes on Earth make it the windiest planet. Neptune is a large, water planet with a blue hydrogen- methane atmosphere and faint rings. Neptune is covered in thin wispy white clouds ich stretch out around the planet.