Why is Uranus On Its Side? | The Planets | Earth Science

[@Mysicalgreenunicorn03]

People keep saying Uranus is boring. But I think it’s so beautiful in its simplicity. Calming

[@ambush9077]

Say your sentence with no context and it sounds so wrong

[@ricardokessler]

She just appreciates Uranus so much

[@bez3727]

It's scary to me

[@Galland780]

I too, think Uranus is beautiful in its simplicity.

[@s4m1r_65]

I hear that a lot. Thank you

[@bobbyd.roberson5588]

An impactful event early in life leading to being sideways and cold inside? I can relate, Uranus.

[@quazar1498]

Damn good one 🐻

[@cyndicorinne]

Finally a nice clean and thoughtful quip about the planet that involves characteristics of the planet. Well played! 👏

[@charlesdog9795]

You found out your j*w*sh?

[@vvrathhps]

@@charlesdog9795 Might wanna look up how to use your and you're, but I know words are difficult for inbred fucks like you. So I applaud your attempt little guy.

[@NotThatLittleJohnny]

@@vvrathhps Genetics has nothing to do with racism. It's all environment. But perhaps your right. All I really know is, racism blends moronic behavior with stupid decisions to a degree rarely scene in nature. ;-)

[@aacmbirdzilla2343]

I find ironic and kinda poetic that the second nearest planet to the sun is the hottest, and the second last is the coldest, yet those two, are the only ones with a different rotation orientation than the other planets

[@annoyed707]

Rotation of Venus is retrograde and slow.

[@marilyn2667]

That's a great observation!

[@felixthestrawberrycat]

like father like daughter (in mythology venus is Uranus's daughter)

[@letyvasquez2025]

Gases are thermal conductors

[@lapis591]

Interesting, but that isn't irony. It's coincidence you're describing.

[@miccrhaafetl5101]

As my Astro professor use to say. If you have a question about why a planet or moon is doing something weird, 99% of the time it's from an impactful event. She wasn't wrong.

[@znhait]

Or your professor, like many physicists, don't know and are theorizing.

[@miccrhaafetl5101]

@@znhait You Think.

[@stevem2323]

​@@znhaitThey absolutely do.

[@lapis591]

His professor '-are-' hypothesising, even predicting, but not 'theorising.'

[@SalmanKhan-ze3zh]

Without a shred of evidence

[@marios.sanchez]

Uranus is kind of my favorite planet because of all the differences from other planets such as rolling on it`s side and being the coldest and spinning in the opposite direction of the rest of the planets🧐

[@fauresfaures4314]

thanks

[@Kwright304]

Uranus also great but I appreciate it

[@JTelli786]

We’ve had dedicated missions to Jupiter and Saturn, I sincerely hope that one day we get dedicated missions to Uranus and Neptune.

[@Belov3ed_Angel]

:)

[@Colin.71]

Well, Jupiter and Saturn teach us important things, jupiter is nearby and basically taught us a lot about how gas giants worked, Saturn taught us the same but about rings, and both saturn and jupiter have moons that are possibly able to sustain life. Saturn’s moon titan has liquid methane on the surface and it’s not as cold as you’d expect. Some of the Jupiter Galilean moons are suspected to have water oceans underneath their crust, especially Europa. Those are important things, sure Uranus and Neptune could teach us a lot, but with modern day technology, it could even take lifetimes (in some cases), so the people who launched it wouldn’t even see it go halfway there. And we do also know a decent amount about the ice giants. I still think we should explore them even if they aren’t going to be very influential, however the space agencies of the world agree that it’s not worth the time and money.

[@JTelli786]

@@Colin.71 problem is is that we didn't know how fascinating Jupiter's and Saturn's moons were until we sent dedicated missions. Before Cassini we only had brief fly-bys of Saturn and it's moons and it wasn't until the dedicated Cassini mission that we discovered Enceladus' water geysers, prior to that dedicated mission Enceladus was just another ordinary moon. Same can be said for Jupiter's moon Europa. For all we know Titania, Oberon, etc., could be just as supporting of life and data but we only have very fuzzy images of them and nothing more, fuzzy images such as we had when we first visited Jupiter. Who knows what teachings lay within these two ice giants and their moons.

[@Colin.71]

@@JTelli786 The moons were just another reason why they are fascinating and why they were studied first, besides people have briefly studied ice giant moons and it’s way to cold with no source of warmth (not a guarantee but a pretty good chance there’s no liquid water). Regardless, the closest gas giants are easier to get to as opposed to a medium sized ice giant lifetimes away. And they still taught us about how gas giants and the outer solar system planets operate. I still agree that the ice giants should be explored, but at this moment in time, no space exploration programs it’s worthwhile.

[@skipads5141]

I'm sure someone has taken a trip to Uranus.

[@autumnstar7346]

I came straight to the comments because I know Uranus is always the butt of jokes. You guys never disappoint. Unfortunately this is what happens when something smashes into Uranus, it gets tilted in its side.

[@koreanfriedchildren]

and it has rings 😩😩😩

[@UATU.]

I think you guys might be doing it wrong.

[@-M0LE]

The smashing into it part was funny af

[@stevenmoore8113]

Yep.

[@autumnstar7346]

@@-M0LE yes it was😃 but what’s funnier is that it really is true. I don’t recall the details, but Uranus did get tilted in its side because celestial bodies slammed into it😁 so now it’s butt is sticking upwards....perfect position to be had😁 the biggest cosmic joke in our solar system. Even God has a sense of humor.

[@LiquidShadows]

"Why is Uranus on its side?" Uhhh...because I'm laying down? Jokes aside, this is beautiful. I've always had an odd fascination with Uranus and Neptune, probably because they're so far away and we know so little about them compared to planets like Jupiter and Saturn.

[@suprabrajbhandari548]

Stop with the ass jokes. How can you not get tried of it

[@TheDeadMeme27]

was lookin for a comment of this type

[@captain_nukta]

@@suprabrajbhandari548 chill

[@ryanmartin73]

@@suprabrajbhandari548 we will never grow tired of it!

[@Kurayamiblack]

@@suprabrajbhandari548 Some people are just nasty. Plus we as individuals don't talk about Uranus enough to hear it get old so it's free real estate every time. I try to be as respectful as I can, but even I pictured a girl lying on her side presenting herself when I read the title... Yes, I should be ashamed of myself, and I am, and I definitely should NOT have shared that delicate info but I'm taking that bullet anyways to show that no matter how mature you think you are, you probably thought about the jokes before you ever clicked because we all do wether with post about it or not. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be in the corner freaking out quietly about what I just did to myself here 👌

[@dennisquinn7729]

Came for the Uranus jokes. Stayed for the fascinating analysis.

[@rrohitamalan]

😁

[@pepsiyummie1]

How is the USS Enterprise similar to toilet paper? They both search for Klingons around Uranus. Get it? Get it? 😂 so dumb!

[@danbrennan7348]

Youranus is on your bum

[@cgmiddle]

No analysis worth noting. Just another click for ads site.

[@margin606]

​@@cgmiddle Well I learned something (and didn't get any ads)

[@CringerKitty]

Zachary Quinto is the perfect narrator for these videos, and the animation is always very well done.

[@machirim2805]

Mr Spock is narrarating to us about the Sol system. I love it

[@JohnBaiger]

@@machirim2805 He did Nimoy proud.

[@sagefaribole]

Omg thanks for mentioning that! I had no idea it was him!

[@dkazmer2]

No, it's prof. Brian Cox

[@sagefaribole]

@@dkazmer2 Brian Cox in the UK version and Zachary Quinto in the US version (according to Wikipedia)

[@eaux_72]

“Uranus is an entirely new class of planet.” Yes. Yes it is.

[@yoth9699]

humor.

[@oobrocks]

Nope

[@nou5440]

Uranus aka the rainbow planet

[@michaelr3583]

😏

[@jacquecorpoix6507]

Emphasis on the last three letters of the word class.

[@TheNobbynoonar]

If there is not enough heat on Uranus to drive the storms like those seen on Jupiter and Saturn, how is it that Neptune, which is the farthest planet from the Sun, has large storms and 1000mph winds?

[@cube2fox]

Yeah, how come?

[@chijanofuji]

It's explained (hinted at) at 5:06 - Neptune still has it's primordial heat in its core. It is theorized that because of the collision of Uranus with an Earth-sized object early on in it's formation it's lost most of this primordial heat and was left with a depleted core temperature. The Wikipedia article for Uranus cites the following source for this theory: Hawksett, David (2005). "Ten Mysteries of the Solar System: Why is Uranus So Cold?". Astronomy Now: 73

[@melissapyle7879]

😊

[@adamjensen9195]

They explain it in the Neptune video

[@GregConquest]

@@chijanofuji I imagine that when there was still a high thermal difference between the hot core and the cooled surface of the larger body, in that age the already cooler smaller body (heat is lost as a function of surface area; bigger cools slower) crashed. the core of the larger body was basically "stirred up", and like a cup of coffee, it cooled faster (internal movement pushes hotter core elements toward the cooler surface - reducing the insulation effect).

[@knightryder4021]

After reading the title I had to sit up straight 😂

[@bilalattique]

😂😂😂😂 dude lmao

[@AakashKumar-tn6yh]

BRO😂😂😂😂

[@LeoHorovitz1984]

Because I'm lying down.

[@mcgoo721]

People always say uranus and neptune are boring but I find them hauntingly beautiful.

[@abalrog42]

Neptune has crazy fast supersonic winds and rains diamonds, pretty amazing...

[@mcgoo721]

@@abalrog42 imma go there, on god.

[@muricamarine9473]

I ve seen a couple of them myself, some are just so colorful and beautiful 😍

[@Banana_Split_Cream_Buns]

We associate green and blue with life.

[@Jason-..-]

Agreed. Love Uranus's rings

[@goofygoobers129]

0:22 "voyager sensors reveal why uranus is so featureless" this make me laugh so hard 😂

[@Pandamasque]

quite a burn

[@Belov3ed_Angel]

🤦

[@quazar1498]

@@Belov3ed_Angel 🤩

[@custardclips7751]

I guess its mildly humorous. Nothing that should make a grown adult laugh out loud.

[@rocketraccoon1976]

I'm suing NASA for being a peeping Tom. 😡

[@Hokunin]

Uranus is not only big and full of gas, it also has the place where the Sun never shines - cuz the dark side doesn't turn towards the sun.

[@the91end]

Are you sure?

[@x2x3456]

Don't be so crude

[@m.abdullah345]

😂😂

[@haikalmiftah2529]

Actually not. all of Uranus surface can experience the sun shine, 21 years for each pole and 42 years for the equator (Uranus finishing it's orbit once for every 84 earth year). Uranus axis not always pointing towards the Sun.

[@x2x3456]

@@haikalmiftah2529 get a life

[@christopherjohnson2171]

As far as Venus' retrograde rotation goes I think the clue there is in how slow it rotates. I think early on there was a collision that caused it to rotate backwards and slowly, over time, that rotation is slowing and being pulled towards a "normal" rotation in the direction of its orbit.

[@GregConquest]

Makes sense as all orbiting objects are being pulled into tidal lock, right?

[@jpthepug3126]

That collision would destroy Venus maybe it’s retrograde rotation is because of solar wind reversing the rotation that would explain the slow rotation

[@GregConquest]

@@jpthepug3126 Solar wind would push on all sides equally so would have no net effect -- neither slowing or speeding up rotation.

[@jpthepug3126]

@@GregConquest slowing it so much it reversed its rotation

[@L8rCloud]

If you spin any rotating sphere EXACTLY 180deg it effectively spins in the opposite direction. Uranus is EXACTLY 90deg. What’s more probable? That the planets were hit by other massive objects or that it’s a manifestation of a dzhanibekov effect..?

[@paulgibbon5991]

One thing nobody ever mentions about Uranus is how much the poles look like gigantic terrifying eyes.

[@rocketraccoon1976]

How dare you!! 😡

[@bilalattique]

@@rocketraccoon1976😂😂😂😂

[@AakashKumar-tn6yh]

​@rocketrac🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣coon1976

[@YEdwardP]

I used to watch documentaries and read books about the planets and space when I was a child back in the 90s. Decades later, the novelty and magic has rather growth thin. Not gonna lie, this documentary hasn't really rekindled the flame. But, what warms my heart now is knowing that there are children out there who are discovering about the planets for the first time watching videos like this. For whom this is all new and exciting. Where the aethereal music floats like whispers of secrets not yet revealed.

[@mocianK]

I don't feel anything was really explained here. Why was Uranus tilted so much by impacts and Jupiter and Saturn were not? How did the impact relinquish the internal energy? The video is 6 1/2 minutes long and its just like 5 little facts without much explanation.

[@doxfie.]

i think this video is full of uranus jokes we dont get yet

[@arrionelton]

Because Voyager flew past him and measured something there, and photographed, like Neptune, we now know little about these two ice giants. These two planets need to send spacecraft so that they study these planets for several years, as in the example of Saturn or Jupiter.

[@KissMyFatAxe]

Jupiter and Saturn are far bigger planets. You should also remember that we don't really know a whole lot about Uranus yet. At least, not as much as we know about the other planets.

[@Axidentally0nPurpose]

I don't think BBC is here to educate i think they are here to entertain.

[@sacr3]

I agree, it seems these videos are more about little tiny tidbits without any in-depth information. To tilt a planet of that Mass, oof you need a lot of mass to do that

[@OGSontar]

Here's a question I have never heard answered. What stopped Uranus' roll? So, a collision likely knocked it on its side, but...why did it stop? It's not flat on the bottom, there's no invisible table underneath it for it to thump on and stop, no friction, no anything to keep that new motion from continuing to keep Uranus flipping end over end. And isn't momentum conserved? If something _did_ stop it, where did that enormous energy go? Enough energy to knock a planet of that size and mass over on its side is mindboggling. Seems like there's some serious questions a single impact doesn't really cover. Was it torque from Uranus' original rotation that stopped it? That's still a lot of energy unaccounted for, it would seem.

[@SB5SimulationsFerroviairesEEP]

Very good question! Stéph.

[@carlojg8541]

If I may try to give an answer. In a word, gravity. Unless hit with an object big enough or hard enough at the right angle to dislodge it an orbital object will stay on the same path more or less. The only effect of the hit was the wild tilt of its axis and it's rotation. Like a gyroscope the hit only made it swing to its sides but not enough to release it from the sun's gravity. The only effect is the tilt. We're still seeing the effects of that hit and it'll keep going long after we're gone.

[@sankalp2520]

what do you mean uranus stopped rolling? It still rotates around it axis, just at 90 degrees. It has not stopped rotating.

[@SB5SimulationsFerroviairesEEP]

@@carlojg8541 You haven't understood the question! He asks why Uranus has not tilted even more on its axis? What stopped the movement? For centuries of observations, we should have seen this star change its inclination several times, because nothing in space can stop a movement except an obstacle, or a gravitation making the object unwind! But in truth, NOBODY can say what happened in the system born billions of years ago! All that is told about its creation is only speculations and theories! But as they are emitted by so-called luminaries of science, they must be right! But nothing is less sure! This planet may well have been designed by creation, God or otherwise in its current position! Have a nice day! Stéph. Vous n'avez pas compris la question! Il demande pourquoi Uranus n'a pas basculé encore plus sur son axe? Qu'est ce qui a arrêté le mouvement? Depuis des siècles d'observations, on aurait dû voir cet astre changer d'inclinaisons plusieurs fois, car rien dans l'espace ne peu arrêter un mouvement en dehors d'un obstacle, ou d'une gravitation faisant dévidé l'objet! Mais en vérité, PERSONNE ne peu dire ce qui s'est passé dans le système né il y a des milliards d'années! Tout ce qui est raconté sur sa création n'est que spéculations et Théories! Mais comme elles sont émissent pas des soient disant sommités de la sciences, elles doivent être forcément juste! Mais rien n'et moins sur! Cette planète peu très bien avoir été conçu par la création, Dieu ou autre dans sa position actuelle! Bonne journée! Stéph.

[@walter4708]

or the knocking off part is just small but did gain momentum until it stopped at what it is now🤷🏼‍♂️

[@JasonB808]

I think it’s too early to say Uranus is just a dead cold world. Pluto was once a boring dwarf planet until we got high rest photos of Plutos surface from New Horizon probe. Uranus will be just as majestic and mysterious as Jupiter and Saturn when newer space probes are sent to Uranus and Neptune. Voyager was made in the 70s, that was before I was even born and I am a middle aged guy. Just image what we could discover with the technology we have now. I think it’s pretty arrogant to think we know everything from a short fly by with dinosaur level tech on board.

[@jordan4835]

It is arrogant. But that's just how these people are.

[@DaleyDale]

they did say it's too cloudy to really see anything with the probe so who knows what's under those clouds.

[@dweebteambuilderjones7627]

Voyager 2 had the bad luck of arriving when Uranus was experiencing southern hemisphere summer (south pole facing the Sun); pictures of Uranus taken during its equinox years in the late 2000s-early 2010s show a more dynamic atmosphere.

[@mojojeinxs9960]

In grade school we all got assigned a planet to write a report on. Thank the stars I got Saturn. Even at 56 still giggle when I say Uranus.

[@ryansenft3315]

I'm in my early 40s and that was validating. Hahaha.

[@cgmiddle]

I still cannot say it without grinning.

[@dr.feelicks2051]

Because i was sleeping

[@patricfernandes1065]

Amazing! Thank you, BBC! 💙

[@Chapusse]

Poor Uranus. The most boring planet with the funniest name.

[@Belov3ed_Angel]

:(

[@cynthcorcor126]

What's your problem? supreme court justice Clarence Thomas.

[@Belov3ed_Angel]

@Duc Thanh Nguyen thank you :)

[@Chicken_Soup890]

In Futurama, after the year 3000 they finally changed the name of the planet finally. They changed it to Urectum to finish that joke for good

[@brettbrooks5511]

I'd argue "most boring" goes to Mercury. All of the planets have their claim to fame. Neptune has the winds. Uranus has the sideways rotation. Saturn has the rings. Jupiter has the red spot. Mars has the 2 moons despite its small size. Earth of course has life. Venus has the reversed rotation and the days longer than years. What does Mercury have? It's small and close to the Sun. And even though its the closest planet to the Sun, it's not even the hottest. That goes to Venus. I'd argue Uranus is top 3 in the interesting category (excluding the Earth in the rankings of course)

[@pendrife]

Me a few seconds into the video: "Boy, narrator's voice sure sounds like Rudy/Robot's voice from *Invincible* " Welp, it is. Zachary Quinto 👌🏻

[@izzad777]

Hes always Sylar to me.

[@pendrife]

@@izzad777 *TRUTH* . Such a magnificent character and series.

[@ethzero]

*Correction: Zachary Quinto 🖖

[@chops6416]

I always thought the heat on gas giants was generated from within by the immense pressure of the atmosphere.

[@johnnyanony8021]

Or from that chili's I ate

[@damienbrown8332]

Uranus is a gas giant. STINKS

[@NazriB]

Lies again? Anus Fist

[@pratikshinde4229]

Good one

[@leogama3422]

Temperature and pressure are correlated, but one not exactly causes the other

[@dryfox11]

I’m sorry, but the 2 lil moons both dancing just on the other side of a ring is adorable

[@sleightofmind2016]

Uranus (singing): "I've gotta be me..., I've got to be me!"

[@davewilson4058]

With Uranus tipped on its side and Venus revolving in the opposite direction to the other Planets, is it a possibility that Venus was originally not part of the forming Solar System, but a wanderer which collided with Uranus on its way in towards the Sun, passing close, so it was eventually captured by the gravity, ending up in its present orbit? It's a thought.

[@thetoad8253]

Interesting.

[@RyuTama42]

I’ve always assumed that Venus was hit by another planetary body so hard that it’s orbit was reversed. Perhaps not.

[@jpthepug3126]

@@RyuTama42 that would destroy Venus

[@jpthepug3126]

wouldn’t Venus have a very elliptical orbit and go all the way to Uranus

[@RyuTama42]

@@jpthepug3126 It’s been heavily theorized that something similar happened to Earth; that a large planetary object once impacted us, and the leftover ejecta and debris that flew out and began orbiting us eventually accumulated into the moon. Even now Earth’s own orbit is slowing, but it’s still pretty even going around the sun. Who’s to say something similar didn’t happen to Venus? And that instead of forming a moon from the impact, just it’s orbit was heavily affected.

[@EthrealLove]

Loved watching space facts and videos like these back in 6th grade now I’m in 10th and here I am

[@bmak7874]

I absolutely love Uranus. 😃😂

[@Getman0001]

*The Rock rise eyebrow meme*

[@Belov3ed_Angel]

@@Getman0001 no

[@rayvanwayenburg998]

I love yours too

[@-M0LE]

Thanks

[@chesi_7_0_79]

I love it too

[@RK-bz7hb]

It’s not about how it looks. It’s about how it feels when you’re there.

[@eustab.anas-mann9510]

Yes, when you're inside its orbit.

[@JimKrause1975]

I am so fascinated with learning about the history of our solar system and it's formation! We live in a very unique solar system it seems!

[@tukangblink5899]

"poor uranus" me: "i know :("

[@alasdairmacdonald9838]

It's very odd to me that they decided to have Zachary Quinto do the narration for the US market. Nothing wrong at all with Brian Cox and indeed his standing as an actual scientist carries weight I would have thought.

[@landotucker]

As a brit, I prefer Quinto. He just has a nicer voice for narration. Doesn't really matter to me that he's not a scientist since his script is based on science.

[@brainmind4070]

Quinto is Spock. Your comment is illogical.

[@theemclane4037]

4:30. I wouldn't want that to happen to Uranus

[@donpcmartin]

Another insightful analysis of Uranus from my BBC

[@hawkbirdtree3660]

Earth: Why are you tilted? Uranus: Bruh...

[@guve25]

Came here for the joke, staying for the sheer production value.

[@naturewatcher7596]

Felt sorry for Uranus when they said that after a big collision it was left as relatively dead and sluggish world. On the other hand... could be used in the far away future to build space capsules for interstellar travels (instead of destroying the live planets nearby).

[@shyamray1988]

I guess it only looks good from the side!! You definitely don’t want to look straight at it though!!

[@SkiesTurnedGrey]

The narrator's voice makes me happy... There's something so...soothing and appropriately science-y about it. It gives me a slight feeling of nostalgia regarding Mass Effect. I'm not sure why. Maybe he sounds kind of similar to the Hanar?

[@islandwarrior0311]

Pretty sure it's Zachary Quinto from the new Star Trek films. He plays Mr. Spock. 🖖

[@MrZoran84]

Me: reads title Also me: "cause... cause I'm lying down?"

[@lorddorker3703]

How does the impact explain the rings being tilted too? They came after? Might be an interesting place to sample.

[@ortherner]

maybe their formed from the rocky planet that collided with uranus

[@brightax7502]

@@ortherner yeah maybe the rocky planet hit Uranus at a angle and half of it got eaten by Uranus and half became rings

[@TinyWeirdo]

I asked my teacher this and he said since the planet was now rotating on its side, everything orbiting the planet slowly started changing its orbits from horizontal to vertical due to its tidal forces of the rotation of the planet.

[@ortherner]

@@TinyWeirdo huh

[@cynthcorcor126]

To mean uranius Halo

[@AndriyAndriyAndriy]

People producing these videos have wonderful sense of beauty.

[@chuatekyan]

If scientists claim Uranus was knocked to its sides, wouldn't the giant gas planet keep on spinning from that impact since there is no gravity or friction to perfectly halt the rotation 90° and 'park' it in its current position?

[@OGSontar]

Knew I should have read down the comments first. Oh, well.

[@carlojg8541]

What do you mean by spinning? It's still spinning around the sun and around its axis. The only effect the hit had was the wild tilt like a gyroscope trying to stabilize and different rotation.

[@chuatekyan]

@@carlojg8541 Uranus is orbiting around the sun due to the latter's gravitational pull. But if Uranus was hit by another object, it would then 'spin' endlessly in another direction (there's no friction in space/vacuum environment). Right now, it feels as if Uranus got hit 90°off and an invisible hand held its position nicely, stopping it from that continuous spin

[@tonywells6990]

@@chuatekyan The planet was probably rotating very quickly on its axis (it now has a day of just over 17 hours) when the collision occurred, so this axial rotation would stabilise the inclination due to the high amount of angular momentum.

[@sanveersingh3235]

Scientists concluded it's titled for better penetration

[@joseph-fernando-piano]

One of my favourite facts is that Uranus, which is almost 3 billion kilometers away from Earth, was observed by human (in 1781) almost 40 years before Antarctica was (1820)...

[@stearman100]

Damn why do the animation and music go so hard on space videos!😂😂

[@RanjanKumar-zd5mf]

I don't know when I will mature enough to read it without bursting into laughter..

[@jdraven0890]

Uranus: why is Earth on its side like that?

[@danz9268]

"Uranus, has rings.." This tickles me, I don't know why.

[@gminor6288]

It tickles Uranus.

[@johnnyanony8021]

It tickles mine too😅

[@karamsinghjat]

bcuz u got rings too

[@johnnyanony8021]

@@karamsinghjat ringworm more like😅😆

[@LusciousLenny]

Someone doesn't know how to properly wipe.

[@chrisregister8021]

Perhaps a lot of the energy of the planet comes from Its formation. Being so far away the accretion process might have been much slower. Therefore, not giving the planet much energy and also allowing it to settle at an askew angle? And any large impacts could have a much more dramatic effect...

[@GiratinaofFury]

I've visited the home of the man who found Uranus - Sir William Herschel. He came to England from Bavaria, looking to establish his career in London as a composer, but moved to Bath when he found London too busy. He and his wife discovered Uranus from their garden, and then later they went on to become astronomers, only continuing their music careers to subsidise their astronomy works. Uranus is an outlier amongst the worlds in our solar system, because where other planets are named after Roman Gods or characters, Uranus uses the Greek name, rather than the Roman "Ouranos", and the moons are named after characters from Shakespeare.

[@gbgdjakoro]

it’s quite odd how despite being such a beautiful world, it’s almost like a dying corpse floating in space

[@riyadhf1rdausehh]

let's applaud everyone who kept their face straight when talking about uranus.

[@javiermoretti1825]

Because they know how to correct pronounce the planet's name. Don't be a schmuck.

[@zipzingg]

@@javiermoretti1825 damn who hurt you?

[@javiermoretti1825]

@@zipzingg No one. I'm highly educated and I'm tired of this predictable juvenile attempts at humor, especially when the pronunciation is categorically wrong.

[@zipzingg]

@@javiermoretti1825 Sounds like you have a stick up Uranus

[@javiermoretti1825]

@@zipzingg You make my point, exactly.

[@Arun_hog]

I only have one wish ...after my death may god let my soul visit these beautiful planets and stars in the universe

[@PHDiaz-vv7yo]

We’re made of stardust. We’ve already been there

[@risenfromyoutubesashesagai6302]

Take 3 big puffs of DMT

[@IllIllIllIllIII]

​@@PHDiaz-vv7yo stay delusional

[@herorisk]

@@IllIllIllIllIII well he is correct.

[@IllIllIllIllIII]

@@herorisk sure buddy

[@CATgadgetsandDIY]

for easy access? i dont know

[@Benzyl]

It's cold because there's not enough heat, the sort of in depth quality science programming that made the BBC what it is today.

[@miriamatembe2261]

Thats literally what heated seats in cars were invented for

[@tech83studio38]

Aw Uranus has its own personal tailors 💙

[@basedpirate]

WAIT WHAT NO

[@tech83studio38]

@@basedpirate I'm sorry I'm actually learning something.

[@savindumarapana6634]

Kudos to CGI team for there amazing work.

[@thecommonsenseconservative5576]

Kudos to your education for "there" amazing work

[@youresoold1216]

@@thecommonsenseconservative5576 There is a lot of cgi in this video to show the planet at different angles, I don’t think this guy is saying he doesn’t think the planet is real

[@thecommonsenseconservative5576]

@@youresoold1216 you missed my point completely. Stop watching science videos until you get my point

[@youresoold1216]

@@thecommonsenseconservative5576 my bad man, I’m dumb haha

[@pratikkatkar7885]

Strange but beautiful

[@The-Berry]

Yes beautiful for position with ring 😍

[@Electroblade360]

We've all been there, Uranus

[@Mslanismelodies]

Mad underatted vid,amazing job done

[@j.megatron]

So do the rings always face the sun, or do they rotate as seen from sun? Is Uranus gravitationally bound to sun like Earth-Moon?

[@tonywells6990]

No, Uranus and its rings north-south axis points in the same direction as it orbits the Sun, so we would see a different aspect of it over its 84 year orbit. At the moment it is almost face on, but in 40 years or so it will look almost edge on. It is too far away to be tidally locked.

[@luisfernando5998]

No Uranus is bound to the toilet 🚽

[@huldu]

It's calmer than the other gas giants but it still has pretty powerful winds compared to Earth.

[@dweebteambuilderjones7627]

The perks of having all your land be buried under thousands of miles of gas.

[@rolandmine6693]

Question: how can we determine Uranus is on its side if there is no right side up in space?

[@davelife3324]

It’s on its side relative to the sun. Most planets spin in the same direction they orbit the sun.

[@Swampsong117]

It’s relative to everything else in the solar system all the planets move around the sun in the same direction in the same plane. They formed in what used to be a huge disk of debris spinning around the sun.

[@onorebakasama]

It's relative to everything else in the solar system, especially compared to the sun. If you have a classroom of 25 desks all facing the front of the room, except for the one pointed toward the closet in the back corner, then that desk would be the anomaly, right? Same goes for the planets. You can determine things that are "normal" in relation. Space is fairly organized and predictable; it's not a mystical realm where anything goes and anything happens, and you're just hopelessly lost once you're off the Earth. No idea why this idea is gaining traction, or where it's from.

[@Ankur3108]

Beautiful Beautiful Beautifully made ❤❤

[@marjanp4784]

Fascinating video, that music is even better...👍

[@truvc]

What about the moons and rings orbiting sideways also? How would an impact explain that?

[@onorebakasama]

Impact during planetary formation. Uranus has been on its side since the beginning of its life.

[@dweebteambuilderjones7627]

Tidal interactions. When Uranus started tilting, its gravity forced everything orbiting it to tilt too over the course of thousands to millions of years until its axis stabilized.

[@boxy3087]

I already laugh at 0:24 I need help

[@sriluxman]

BBC: Why is Uranus on its side? Me: I was lying side ways. What's your problem?🤔

[@Belov3ed_Angel]

🤦

[@TheGillenium]

“Poor Uranus” is how a video should start. I’m here for it.

[@stinkyham9050]

-224c, sounds like normal morning in Toronto, Canada in February.

[@DallasT1998]

Just waiting here for all the jokes in the comments

[@SocksWithSandals]

Rings around Uranus. Probing Uranus. Methane found in Uranus.

[@pineseeker6162]

Idk why you all have to joke about it it’s not funny it’s not cute it’s just science and astronomy quit ruining it with bad jokes please cause some people come here to learn about this stuff and you just ruin it so STOP!!

[@sidolan]

@@pineseeker6162 wow. Chill out.

[@yousorooo]

Can’t wait for the scientists to rename it to Urectum and end it once and for all.

[@pineseeker6162]

@@sidolan no cause it’s true and they ruin it with bad jokes I don’t need to they need to learn to filter there mouth

[@Dan_C604]

I love Zachary Quinto’s voice as a narrator, it is so “spoky” :))

[@orbitaljellyfish808]

Wild guess: It’s because it’s far enough from solar electromagnetic polarity to be more influenced by galactic version of same, and since we are corkscrewing around the galaxy center, it is actually in-plane with the Milky Way

[@nboon7094]

Ahh yes the complete bs comment

[@brainmind4070]

How do you explain Neptune, then?

[@GrayArmyGaming]

Is there any up and down in space? Doesn’t everything depend on one’s reference point?

[@king_fisherXX]

When I think of Uranus, I think of that kid who tipped cows over in Barnyard movie 💀

[@SpicaRigel]

My favourite planet, together with Pluto and Jupiter off course 😊

[@MediaJunkey]

I hate to break it to ya, but….

[@Belov3ed_Angel]

:)

[@timc333]

Pluto thanks you and loves you for still calling it a planet , Proud little Pluto gets to smile again thanks to you . 😊😁

[@titan9259]

@@timc333 all the other dwarf planets?

[@timc333]

@@titan9259 I have no sympathy for the other dwarf planets as they always knew what they are , but poor Pluto was always told it was a planet , it used to see itself as one of the boys right along with Earth and Jupitar and Mars etc. but then all of a sudden in a feat of human weakness we told Pluto that it was no longer a planet , but an exto satellite , Pluto looked at its reflection and said I'm a what ? I say what was the harm in letting Pluto think it was just as grand as all the others , we didn't have to bust Pluto's grand delusion did we ? 🤪

[@jezcoates]

… what if Uranus was the only planet ‘the right way up’? 🤯

[@officialgrindr]

My question is why it tilted and stopped where it is. Newton’s second law tells us that it should just keep spinning forever. Unless it IS actually still tilting on a very small scale?

[@rsrt6910]

It most likely is, but the time periods involved are so large it's unlikely we'll be alive to see it.

[@periodvicky]

we need to learn more about this planet

[@accidentalGamer69]

You want an asteroid ? Uranus: On the side

[@brianquigley7336]

Let's discuss the moons of Uranus. Hemroydus, Proctos and Sphinctos. I would think that if something orbited Uranus closely enough, it would eventually be captured and drawn into Uranus. Butt, being a gas giant, Uranus would eventually eject the solid matter along with a giant gas cloud. This solid matter could vary considerably in consistency from watery and gooey, to rock hard. This is how Hemroydus was formed. Hemroydus is also known as "The blood moon." Taken from the Scientific Journal article titled, The Anals of Colonoscopic Origins.

[@Lowebotz]

This is an underrated comment. 😂

[@SkiesTurnedGrey]

1:57 How do they know that those two specks, as opposed to the thousands of other specks, are moons?

[@samdavis649]

My guess would be two factors, brightness of the reflection of the sun as they are probably smoother, and secondly the effect of the mass of the moons on the nearby rocks in the rings

[@SkiesTurnedGrey]

@Barenrandombruker 123 I meant as compared to the other chunks/rocks in the ring, not the stars in the background. Thanks for the info, though.

[@SkiesTurnedGrey]

@@samdavis649 Interesting, and sounds plausible.

[@astroalien4352]

We take pictures of the same area of space a few hours apart. Moon times to change position relatively fast. Stars being so far away move less than a pixel compared to moons

[@dloui5214]

i told my girlfriend that the most beautiful thing on this universe is uranus .

[@Sirix72]

Uranus my favorite planet in the solar system it's fascinating💙

[@vice.nor.virtue]

"Why is Uranus on it's side? ME: Well if you must ask I happen to be reclining on a chez-long.

[@vegassims7]

I have always believed that the rings you see on Uranus and Neptune are all that's left of an incredible ring system on par with Saturn. Time has deteriorated the rings systems so all that's left is thin dark spaced out rings on both planets.

[@andrewg.carvill4596]

It isn't on its side, it just prefers rolling to spinning! It would be funny if all the planets rolled, and then they discovered just one that spun instead. We'd be saying: "Wow, it must be weird on that planet, the sun would appear to come up from behind the horizon, cross the sky and disappear again hundreds of times each year, instead of spiraling round and round the zenith for half the year and then disappearing for the other half, like on a normal planet ! "

[@BigNewGames]

Uranus most likely had an orbit with an incline almost perpendicular to the planetary disk. When it finally migrated to the incline it takes on now the spin axis never changed so that now it appears to spins on it's side. Nothing had to strike it for this to happen because it would always spin on the same axis, research gyroscopes.

[@Q_QQ_Q]

Lol

[@JackPomi]

Well, needs to be proven

[@Vjx-d7c]

That's a very wild theory, it probably collided with something big during the formation of the solar system

[@biggrayalien4791]

Amazing how they sent a second satellite to be the videographer for the shots, even that dynamic shot of both Voyager 2 and Uranus @2:33 :B

[@brian5863]

Does anyone know how to watch the entire documentary?

[@takashi1488]

Imagine if we had thousands of planets in our solar system instead of 8. Kids will be not playing Fortnite, but looking at the stars and dreaming about going there someday.

[@thefallenlettuce2797]

There is a theory that there are small planets in our system that we cannot or have not detected yet. As impossible as it seem you should remember that we still find new animals on earth after living here for thousands of years

[@dweebteambuilderjones7627]

The gas giants ate most of them.

[@risenfromyoutubesashesagai6302]

A major impact to Uranus has left it bent over.

[@jasonconrad5772]

Uranus has liquid surface, so as the wind blows, no heat from friction, as a result of the wind, could be created. Saturn, on the other hand, has a rocky surface that allows heat to build up from friction due to the mighty winds. There are a few beta factors involved in this as well, such as planet age, size, & core temp. Surface composition is the primary deciding factor for surface temperature.

[@TehMushys]

Have you got a source for this mate? Sounds interesting; would like to read more.

[@jasonconrad5772]

@@TehMushys I am the source, mate. This is plain common sense for those who have it. I figured someone with a BETA brain would have brought up the fact that the sun is the biggest deciding factor, which would be true if the sun could reach the planets. I made this calculation on planets being @ the SAME distance.

[@DrHami]

Saturn has a rocky surface? What the fuck are you talking about?

[@jasonconrad5772]

@@DrHami Did you even watch this???

[@TehMushys]

@@jasonconrad5772 My apologies I thought you were talking about science and not fiction, take it easy.

[@khodahh]

I like the hesitation at 4:36 🤭 ... But seriously... the man clearly has a point about orientation not being a choice, especially if it requires an earth size object to "smash" into Uranus in order to change it... This planet is a rabbit hole of deep subjects.

[@TinaBornemannn]

Oh jeh, such things happen. I feel with you Uranus. Don't give up!