![The complex terrain of Ariel is viewed in this image, the best Voyager 2 color picture of the Uranian moon.](https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/PIA00041-800x615.jpg)
NASA/JPL
In recent a long time, NASA has sent large spacecraft—Galileo and Cassini, respectively—to fly around Jupiter and Saturn to explore the handfuls of moons that exist in those planetary systems.
The spacecraft investigated all manner of intriguing moons, from little radiation-saturated hellholes to a world covered in volcanoes. But essentially the most consistently interesting discovery made by these probes was that Jupiter and Saturn are surrounded by small and enormous moons covered in ice, possessing large water oceans below, or each. This was exciting because where there may be water in its liquid state, there may be the opportunity of life.
In response to those discoveries, NASA is planning to launch a mission to Europa, an ice-encrusted moon within the Jovian system, as early as 2024. One other mission may launch to Saturn’s moon Titan a couple of years later, where there are oceans of liquid methane on the surface. And just last month, the European Space Agency launched a spacecraft, Juice, to explore several icy moons at Jupiter.
Now, NASA might have so as to add the moons of Uranus to its exploration hit list. Besides being known for its funny name and its sensible cyan shade, Uranus has no less than 27 moons. They usually’re pretty intriguing, too.
The space agency has only ever flown one spacecraft, Voyager 2, by the seventh planet in our Solar System. The Voyager spacecraft flew by Uranus an extended time ago, in 1985. But in light of the discoveries made by the Cassini, Dawn, and Latest Horizons spacecraft, scientists have been revisiting the information collected by Voyager along with the information obtained by ground-based telescopes.
This has led NASA scientists to conclude that 4 of Uranus’ largest moons—Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, and Oberon—probably contain water oceans below their icy crusts. These oceans are likely dozens of kilometers deep and possibly fairly salty in being sandwiched between the upper ice and inner rock core. These inner cores are likely producing enough heat from radioactive decay to create layers of liquid water, the scientists say. Moreover, chlorides, in addition to ammonia, are likely abundant within the oceans of the icy giant’s largest moons and will be helping to maintain them unfrozen.
The excellent news is that NASA might be about to get serious about exploring the Uranian system. A couple of 12 months ago, the National Academies met to prioritize planetary science, astrobiology, and planetary defense missions in the subsequent 10 years, and Uranus topped the list.
A “Uranus Orbiter and Probe” would, the scientists said, transform our knowledge of ice giants generally and the Uranian system specifically through flybys and the delivery of an atmospheric probe. A launch throughout the period 2023 to 2032 was deemed viable on currently available launch vehicles.
Now, scientists in search of to explore Uranus have one other great reason to send a big spacecraft there—further exploration of icy moons. In any case, nobody knows what lies in Uranus.
What, you thought I used to be going to jot down this whole story without making that joke?