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Two Faces of Uranus (Hubble)

Side-by-side telescope images of a greenish blue spherical object with rings on the left and without rings on the right.

These Hubble Space Telescope images show the varied faces of Uranus. On the left, Uranus in 2005 displays its ring system. The planet — along with its rings and moons — is tipped on its side, rotating at roughly a 90-degree angle from the plane of its orbit. In the Hubble close-up taken just one year later, Uranus reveals its banded structure and a mysterious dark storm.

About the Data

  • Data Description
    Data DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
    Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.
    The HST observations include those from program 10473 M. Showalter (SETI Institute) and J. Lissauer (NASA Ames Research Center) and 10805 L. Sromovsky (University of Wisconsin, Madison), H. Hammel (Space Science Institute), and K. Rages (SETI Institute).
  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    ACS/WFC
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    August 2005 and August 23, 2006
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    Left: Clear, F330W, F475W, F606W, F814W Right: F550M, F658N, and F775W
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    Uranus
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Uranus with rings and bands of gas
  • Release Date
    February 26, 2020
  • Science Release
    Examining Ice Giants with NASA’s Webb Telescope
    Read the release
  • Credit
    Image: NASA, ESA, Mark Showalter (SETI Institute), Lawrence Sromovsky (UW-Madison), Patrick Fry (UW-Madison), Heidi Hammel (SSI), Kathy Rages (SETI Institute)

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Side-by-side telescope images of a greenish blue spherical object with rings on the left and without rings on the right.
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

These images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by the ACS instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope. Several filters were used to sample specific wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Left: Blue: F330W Green: F475W Orange: F606W Red: F814W Right: Blue: F550M Green: F658N Red: F775W

Related Images & Videos

Side-by-side telescope images of a greenish blue spherical object with rings on the left and a bluer sphere without rings on the right.

Uranus and Neptune (Hubble)

The Hubble Space Telescope captured these images of the mysterious ice giants Uranus, left, and Neptune, right. Shortly after launch in 2021, the James Webb Space Telescope will unlock secrets of the atmospheres of both planets.

A crisp image of the planet Uranus as observed by Voyager 2. The planet appears as an almost uniform light blue orb.

Uranus (Voyager 2)

Arriving at Uranus in 1986, Voyager 2 observed a bluish orb with extremely subtle features. A haze layer hid most of the planet's clouds from view.

Neptune, a medium blue sphere with lighter blue bands of clouds and swirls of light blue at the center.

Neptune (Voyager 2)

This Voyager 2 image of Neptune shows a cold and dark wind-whipped world. In 1989, NASA’s Voyager 2 became the first and only spacecraft to observe the planet Neptune, passing about 3,000 miles above the planet’s north pole.

Neptune, a light blue sphere with two large, white clouds at the top, is set against the black background of space.

Neptune (Hubble, 2018)

This Hubble Space Telescope image of Neptune, taken in 2018, shows a new dark storm (top center).

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Details

Last Updated
Aug 28, 2025
Contact
Media

Laura Betz
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
laura.e.betz@nasa.gov

Image Credit

NASA, ESA, Mark Showalter (SETI Institute), Lawrence Sromovsky (UW-Madison), Patrick Fry (UW-Madison), Heidi Hammel (SSI), Kathy Rages (SETI Institute)

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