Tech News

Tech Business News

  • Home
  • Technology
  • Business
  • News
    • Technology News
    • Local Tech News
    • World Tech News
    • General News
    • News Stories
  • Media Releases
    • Tech Media Releases
    • General Media Releases
  • Advertisers
    • Advertiser Content
    • Promoted Content
    • Sponsored Whitepapers
    • Advertising Options
  • Cyber
  • Reports
  • People
  • Science
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Digital Marketing
    • Guest Publishers
  • About
    • Tech Business News
    • News Contributions -Submit
    • Journalist Application
    • Contact Us
Reading: Unexplained temperature shift observed on Neptune
Share
Font ResizerAa
Tech Business NewsTech Business News
  • Home
  • Technology News
  • Business News
  • News Stories
  • General News
  • World News
  • Media Releases
Search
  • News
    • Technology News
    • Business News
    • Local News
    • News Stories
    • General News
    • World News
    • Global News
  • Media Releases
    • Tech Media Releases
    • General Press
  • Categories
    • Crypto News
    • Cyber
    • Digital Marketing
    • Education
    • Gadgets
    • Technology
    • Guest Publishers
    • IT Security
    • People In Technology
    • Reports
    • Science
    • Software
    • Stock Market
  • Promoted Content
    • Advertisers
    • Promoted
    • Sponsored Whitepapers
  • Contact & About
    • Contact Information
    • About Tech Business News
    • News Contributions & Submissions
Follow US
© 2022 Tech Business News- Australian Technology News. All Rights Reserved.
Tech Business News > Science > Unexplained temperature shift observed on Neptune
Science

Unexplained temperature shift observed on Neptune

Matthew Giannelis
Last updated: April 17, 2022 4:43 am
Matthew Giannelis
Share
SHARE

The most distant planet in our solar system, Neptune has presented a new mystery.

Frosty Neptune has an average of negative 340 degrees Fahrenheit (negative 220 degrees Celsius), and astronomers still don’t know what caused these temperature shifts.

The planet orbits the Sun at an average distance of 4.498 billion km (2.794 billion miles).and was discovered by the German astronomer Johann Gottfried Galle on 23 September 1846

Astronomers who have been observing Neptune over the past 17 years with several ground-based telescopes have tracked the ice giant’s unexpected drop in global temperature, followed by a sharp warming trend at the planet’s south pole.

Researchers from the University of Leicester, United Kingdom and NASA observed the planet’s temperature from 2003-2020 to understand how its seasons evolve with time. 

The researchers relied on a fleet of ground-based telescopes – Chile’s Very Large Telescope and Gemini South telescope, Hawaii’s Subaru Telescope, Keck Telescope, and the Gemini North telescope as well as a space telescope named Spitzer Space Telescope to study Neptune. 

The unexpected reversal of the trend in the polar region suggests some interesting atmospheric dynamics are at play, said Heidi B Hammel, the executive vice-president of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy.

A year on Neptune lasts about 165 Earth years, so a single season can last about 40 years. It has been summer in Neptune’s southern hemisphere since 2005.

Astronomers decided to track the planet’s atmospheric temperatures once the southern summer solstice occurred that year.

Nearly 100 thermal images of Neptune taken since then showed that much of Neptune gradually cooled, dropping by 14 degrees Fahrenheit (8 degrees Celsius) between 2003 and 2018.

The polar warming has never been observed on Neptune until now.

A study on the phenomenon published Monday in the Planetary Science Journal

“This change was unexpected,” said lead study author Michael Roman, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Leicester, in a statement.”

Since we have been observing Neptune during its early southern summer, we expected temperatures to be slowly growing warmer, not colder.

Then, a dramatic warming event occurred at Neptune’s south pole between 2018 and 2020 and temperatures rose by 11C. This warm polar vortex completely reversed any cooling that occurred before.

Study coauthor Glenn Orton, senior research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said, our data cover less than half of a Neptune season, so no one was expecting to see large and rapid changes.

“This change was unexpected,” said lead study author Michael Roman, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Leicester, in a statement. “Since we have been observing Neptune during its early southern summer, we expected temperatures to be slowly growing warmer, not colder.”

Infrared light emitted by Neptune’s stratosphere, or the atmospheric band above the active weather layer, has helped astronomers detect temperature fluctuations.

For now, they have considered that the unexpected changes could be due to a number of factors.

“Temperature variations may be related to seasonal changes in Neptune’s atmospheric chemistry, which can alter how effectively the atmosphere cools,” Roman said.

“But random variability in weather patterns or even a response to the 11-year solar activity cycle may also have an effect.”

Growing brightness can be seen at Neptune’s south pole between 2018 and 2020, indicating a warming trend. (ESO/M. Roman; NAOJ/Subaru/COMICS)

More observations will be needed to truly explore these possibilities. The James Webb Space Telescope will observe Uranus and Neptune later this year.

The space observatory’s mid-infrared instrument can map the chemistry and temperatures in Neptune’s atmosphere and could identify what caused the shift. Neptune is more than 30 times as far from the sun as Earth, and it’s the only planet in our solar system that isn’t visible to the naked eye from Earth.

So far, only NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft has flown by Neptune up close, which occurred in 1989.”I think Neptune is itself very intriguing to many of us because we still know so little about it,” Roman said. “This all points towards a more complicated picture of Neptune’s atmosphere and how it changes with time.”

Researchers have their hopes pinned on the James Webb Space Telescope launched in December 2021 to provide answers to this mystery.

By Matthew Giannelis
Follow:
Secondary editor and executive officer at Tech Business News. An IT support engineer for 20 years he's also an advocate for cyber security and anti-spam laws.
Previous Article Fiber optic internet Introduction to Fiber Optic Internet
Next Article TCL + 30 Australia TCL launches four phones from its TCL 30 series in Australia
Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Neptune temp drop

Tech Articles

Starting a small business venture in Australia

Starting A Small Business Venture In Tough Economic Times

When starting a small business venture in Australia it's worth…

December 8, 2024
Content creation platforms leveraged for phishing attacks

Phishing Attacks Exploit Content Creation Platforms

Content creation platforms are being leveraged for phishing attacks. Its…

September 17, 2024
Top Cyber Security Threats 2024

Top Cyber Security Threats In 2024

Top cyber security threats in 2024 has put the information…

October 2, 2024

Recent News

SmartSat and New Zealand Space Agency R&D initiatives
Science

SmartSat Signs (MoU) With New Zealand Space Agency To Accelerate Industry Growth

5 Min Read
Science News
Science

Saturn has a fuzzy core, spread over more than half the planet’s diameter

5 Min Read
SmartSat CRC and NASA team up
Science

NASA and SmartSat team up to collaborate on astronaut emergency communications

5 Min Read
Microrobots have been designed to mimic natural swarms can effectively remove both microplastics and bacterial contaminants from water,
Science

Researchers Develop Microrobots Capable Of Removing Microplastics And Bacteria From Water

5 Min Read
Tech News

Tech Business News

Stay up to date with the latest technology & business news trends from Australia and the around the world.

Technology News reports and whitepaper publishing services are available along with media and advertising options

Our Australian technology news includes People, Business, Science, World News, Local News, Guest publishers, IT News & Tech News Australia | Tech News was established in 2019

About

About Us 
Contact Us 
Privacy Policy
Copyright Policy
Terms & Conditions

December, 10, 2024

Contact

Contact Information.
Melbourne, Australia

Werribee 3030

Phone: +61 431401041

Hours : Monday to Friday, 9am 530-pm.


Tech News

© Copyright Tech Business News 

Latest Australian Tech News – 2024

Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account