A planet that's... - NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

We're always talking about Mars, but are you ready for a trip to Uranus? 🚀✨ While the distance between Earth and this ice giant changes daily, at its closest, the planet (and its 28 Moons) are 1.6 billion miles from us. Uranus has only been visited once by Voyager 2 in 1986 but on April 7, a stellar occultation gave planetary scientists a chance to gather important data about how the middle atmosphere of Uranus' works. That information could help enable future exploration efforts to the planet.

Uranus stands out with a composition that includes significant amounts of methane, hydrogen, and helium. The atmosphere is characterized by layers of clouds, primarily composed of methane ice crystals, which give the planet its distinctive pale blue-green hue. But how does it smell? Let's answer that. | The Brain Maze