NASA releases new images of Uranus's rings captured with the James Webb Space Telescope.

Extract from ABC News

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By Velvet Winter

Posted 17 hours ago

This wide image also shows 14 of the planet’s 27 moons, many of which are named after Shakespearean characters.(Supplied: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI)

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Uranus and its rings shine in vibrant glory in new images captured by the ultra-powerful James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

Utilising the extreme sensitivity on the telescope, NASA was able to capture the planet's rings, moons, storms and even a seasonal polar cap.

JWST also captured Uranus's dim inner and outer rings, including the elusive Zeta ring – the extremely faint and diffuse ring closest to the planet.

Many of the planet's 27 known moons are also visible, even some of the smaller moons that exist within its rings.

Wait, Uranus has rings?

Yep!

While Saturn might be most famous for its rings, some five rings were discovered around Uranus in 1977. Then when the spacecraft Voyager 2 zipped past in the 1980s, more rings were discovered.

Uranus has two sets of rings — the inner system of nine dark, grey rings and the two outermost rings. 

Of its outer rings, one is reddish like other dusty rings in the solar system and the outer ring is blue like Saturn's E ring.

This image of Uranus from NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope shows the planet and its rings in new clarity. (Supplied: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI)

What else can I see in these new images?

One of the most exciting features in this new image is the planet's seasonal north polar cloud cap. 

These include the bright, white, inner cap and the dark lane at the bottom of the polar cap, toward the lower latitudes.

NASA says the polar cap appears to become more prominent when the planet's pole begins to point towards the sun, as it approaches solstice and receives more sunlight.

Uranus will reach its next solstice in 2028.

Is Uranus actually neon blue?

Kind of.

Uranus is a blue-green colour due to the large amount of methane in the atmosphere which absorbs red light but allows blues to be reflected into space. 

However, these images were constructed with JWST's Near infrared Camera (NIRCam), which covers infrared wavelength range from 0.6 to 5 microns. 

The equipment allows astronomers to take pictures of very faint objects around a central bright object, a NASA fact sheet says. 

It works by blocking out the brighter object's light, which makes it possible to capture the dimmer object nearby.

These images are layered on top of each other and colourised to make the final brilliant images.

For example, the images of Uranus were created with four different filters:

• F140M (blue)
• F210M (teal)
• F300M (yellow-green)
• F460M (orange-red)

So, Uranus would appear differently when observed with the human eye.

A labelled image of the new Uranus images showing the filter types listed at the bottom.(Supplied: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI)

James Webb Telescope celebrates second birthday

NASA released the more recent images of Uranus as a treat to celebrate its upcoming second birthday.

The JWST was launched on December 25, 2021 off the northern coast of South America.

Here are some of the spectacular images the telescope has captured over the last two years.

Messier 57 aka The Ring Nebula

The new James Webb images of Messier 57 clearly show the main ring, surrounded by a faint halo and with many delicate structures.(Supplied: University of Manchester)

M51 aka the Whirlpool Galaxy

The M51 galaxy is called the Whirlpool due to its distinct spiral arms.(Supplied: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, A. Adamo (Stockholm University) and the FEAST JWST team)

The Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex

There are about 50 young stars in this image, which is a visualisation of matter invisible to the human eye but can be detected by the JWST. (Supplied: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Klaus Pontoppidan (STScI))

The Pillars of Creation

The Pillars of Creation are a kaleidoscope of colour in NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s near-infrared-light view. (Supplied: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI)

The Tarantula Nebula

The Tarantula Nebula star-forming region is shown in a new light, including tens of thousands of young stars previously shrouded in cosmic dust.(Supplied: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERO production team)