Facts for Kids

Ariel 🪐 is a fascinating moon that orbits the planet Uranus! It is the fourth-largest moon of Uranus and measures about 1,158 kilometers (720 miles) wide. Ariel was discovered in 1851 by the English astronomer William Lassell, and it is one of five major moons of Uranus. This moon is made up mostly of water ice and rock, making it unique! What’s cool about Ariel is that it has many craters and intriguing ice features on its surface, making it a special place to study in our solar system! 🌌

Ariel doesn't have a strong magnetic field like Earth, but Uranus, the planet it orbits, has an unusual magnetic field! 🌌

This magnetic field is tilted and located away from the center of Uranus, which affects its moons, including Ariel. While Ariel doesn't create its own magnetic field, scientists study Uranus's magnetic effects on it to understand more about how moon and planet systems work! 🔍

Ariel has many impact craters that tell us about its history! These craters were formed when asteroids or other space rocks smashed into its surface. 💥

Some of the largest craters are over 100 kilometers wide! The craters can be smooth or rough, depending on how old they are. Scientists study these craters to learn how old the surface is and how active Ariel might be! The less craters there are, the younger the moon’s surface is! 🌌

Ariel orbits around Uranus at an average distance of about 190,000 kilometers (118,000 miles). It takes Ariel 2.5 Earth days to go around Uranus once! 🌓

Interestingly, Ariel is tidally locked, which means the same side always faces Uranus, just like how the Moon always shows us one face! Its rotation, or the time it takes to spin around its own axis, is also 2.5 Earth days, making its day and year the same length! 🌍

Ariel might not seem like a cozy place for life as we know it because of its cold temperatures and thin atmosphere. 🌬

️ However, scientists are very interested in its subsurface ocean! 💧

The existence of liquid water is crucial when considering the potential for life! While we haven’t found life on Ariel, the right conditions under the ice may hold secrets to life’s possibilities beyond Earth. Who knows what could be hiding beneath the surface? 🌌

Ariel's surface is covered in bright, icy terrains and many large craters! Some of these craters are more than 100 kilometers wide! The biggest crater is called M. It also has canyons, cliffs, and smooth areas shaped by ice! 🌊

Ice volcanoes might also exist on Ariel, where water can flow from inside the moon. The colors you see on Ariel are due to different materials in the ice, making it look beautiful! Scientists believe Ariel has a young surface, which means it might be geologically active! 🌥

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The only spacecraft to visit Ariel was NASA's Voyager 2, which flew by in 1986! 🚀

Voyager 2 took amazing pictures of Ariel and sent back a lot of information. It helped scientists learn about Ariel's surface and its many craters. Since then, no other spacecraft have visited Ariel, but scientists hope to explore it more in the future! 🌌

There are plans for missions that could study this icy moon up close!

Ariel is known for its icy surface that is mainly made up of water ice! ❄

️ Scientists believe that underneath the icy crust lies a salty ocean! This ocean might contain more water than all the freshwater on Earth! How incredible! Water is very important for life, and finding it under the surface makes Ariel an exciting place to explore! 🌊

The ice on the surface is changed by various processes, and the scenery is truly out of this world!

Ariel has a very thin atmosphere, which is mostly made up of oxygen! 🌬

️ However, it is not like the air we breathe on Earth. There isn’t enough atmosphere to support living things. The atmosphere is about 1% of the thickness of Earth's atmosphere, so it can’t hold heat very well. There may be some trace amounts of other gases like carbon dioxide. This makes Ariel a cold place, with temperatures averaging -224°C (-371°F)! Brr! ❄

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Ariel was discovered in 1851, a time when space exploration was just starting! 🌍

The discovery helped scientists understand more about the solar system and the moons of planets. Ariel is named after a character from Shakespeare's play "The Tempest," showing how much stories and science can connect! 📖

The study of Ariel has advanced our knowledge of icy moons, and future missions may reveal even more about this beautiful moon! So, Ariel is not just a moon; it's a key to understanding our solar system better! 🌌

When we compare Ariel to other moons in the solar system, it is quite unique! For example, Europa 🪐, a moon of Jupiter, also has a subsurface ocean, but its surface is very different from Ariel’s. While Ariel has many craters, Europa has a smooth, icy surface with fewer craters and possibly geysers! Another moon, Titan, is larger than Ariel and has a thick atmosphere! 🪐

Each moon has its special features, making them all exciting to study! 🌍