In Depth | Neptune – NASA Solar System Exploration
Dark, cold, and whipped by supersonic winds, ice giant Neptune is the eighth and most distant planet in our solar system. More than 30 times as far from the Sun as Earth, Neptune is the only planet in our solar system not visible to the naked eye. In 2011 Neptune completed its first 165-year orbit since its discovery in 1846.
10 Need-to-Know Things About Neptune - NASA Solar System …
Neptune orbits our Sun, a star, and is the eighth planet from the Sun at a distance of about 2.8 billion miles (4.5 billion kilometers).
Neptune By the Numbers – NASA Solar System Exploration
Jan 9, 2025 · Neptune is the eighth and most distant planet from the Sun. It’s the fourth largest, and the first planet discovered with math.
In Depth | Proteus – NASA Solar System Exploration
Proteus is one of the largest of Neptune's known moons, although it is not as big as Triton. The moon has an odd box-like shape and if it had just a little more mass it would be able to transform into a sphere. Proteus orbits Neptune about every 27 hours.
Neptune - NASA Solar System Exploration
NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration. Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system.
In Depth | Triton – NASA Solar System Exploration
Triton is the largest of Neptune's 13 moons. It is unusual because it is the only large moon in our solar system that orbits in the opposite direction of its planet's rotation―a retrograde orbit. Scientists think Triton is a Kuiper Belt Object captured by Neptune's gravity millions of years ago.
Planet Compare - NASA Solar System Exploration
Jan 9, 2025 · NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration. Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system.
Recipe for Neptune Revealed by Scientists - NASA Solar System …
Oct 26, 2000 · One of a broad range of objectives of the European Space Agency's Infrared Space Observatory was to observe Neptune from 1995 to 1998, to find out the ratio of hydrogen to helium, two gases known to make up almost all of the planet's thick atmosphere.
The Exploration of Neptune and Triton - NASA Solar System …
Jan 9, 2025 · Neptune and its captured moon Triton are unexplored with modern spacecraft instrumentation. Observations of these objects are urgently needed to address planet formation and the evolution of ice giant planets, icy satellites, …
The Atmospheres of the Ice Giants, Uranus and Neptune
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.