This means that scientists believed in nearly four decades that the planet Uranus and its five largest moons were dead worlds, apparently frozen. But new research tells us that this system is not as sterile as believed once. This time it turned out to have oceans and conditions that can be potentially good for supporting life.
Here are the surprising findings of Voyager 2:
When NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft flew past Uranus in 1986, it provided photographs and information that were never seen before, indicating the planet and its moons as dead. Voyager’s sensors could not detect any sign of geological activity or even oceans, and people considered the Uranian system to be dead.
But a new reexamination of Voyager 2’s findings indicates that its observations were somehow skewed by an unexpected solar storm during that time. This solar wind, together with the Voyager’s flyby, may have briefly momentarily disrupted Uranus’ magnetic field and scattered material, giving off the idea of inactivity of the system.
A More Promising Picture
The new findings indicate that the Uranus system and its moons are much more dynamic than anyone could have thought to be. According to Dr. William Dunn of University College London, co-author of the new analysis, these moons could carry subsurface oceans and thus potentially carry life. “These results suggest that the Uranian system could be much more exciting than previously thought,” he said. “There could be moons there that have the conditions necessary for life, they might have oceans below the surface that could be teeming with fish!”
Reviving Old Data
The results are fascinating, and I am really excited to see that there is potential for life in the Uranian system,” she told BBC News. “It’s amazing that scientists are looking back at the data we collected in 1986 and finding new results and new discoveries.”.
Dr. Affelia Wibisono, of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, concurs on the need for reanalysis. “It shows how important it is to look back at old data, because sometimes, hiding behind them is something new to be discovered which can help us design the next generation of space exploration missions.”
Missions to Uranus in the Future
NASA has already taken these new discoveries into account in the next mission to Uranus. The mission, known as the Uranus Orbiter and Probe, is planned for launch this decade, where it will pass by the planet and its moons to take a closer look. “We need to rethink how exactly we’re going to design the instruments on the new mission so that we can best capture the science we need to make discoveries,” said Dr. Jamie Jasinski, a NASA scientist, who also initiated the re-examination of the Voyager 2 data.
The mission is to reach in 2045, and the scientists await with bated breath whether these moons, which were thought to be devoid of life, have a chance to harbour life.
(Includes inputs from online sources)
