New Oxford study shatters misconceptions: Uranus and Neptune's true colors revealed
Thanks to the recent research led by Professor Patrick Irwin from Oxford, we now understand this newly uncovered truth. To date, only one spacecraft, Voyager 2, has recorded Uranus and Neptune closely, reaching them in 1985 and 1988 respectively. For many years, NASA's color scheme presented in the Voyager 2 images was the mainstream reference. However, Irwin's team's efforts have shed light on the true colors of both planets, as illustrated in the montage below. The image of Uranus has slightly altered, but Neptune bears no resemblance to its popular depiction.
3:32 PM EST, January 5, 2024
Unmasking the Planets' True Colors
Voyager 2 took snapshots of both planets in separate colors. These monochromatic images were later amalgamated to construct a color photo. This method brings more planetary details into focus, but the subsequent process of compiling different images into a single frame isn't flawless.
This procedure, particularly with Neptune's photos, resulted in the planet appearing "too blue". Moreover, early images of Neptune were often tweaked to enhance contrast, rendering the white clouds in its atmosphere more visible. Initially, these processed images were accompanied by disclaimers highlighting the modifications made for detail enhancement. Over the years, this practice has been discontinued. Professor Irwin's team used original photos and their unique data processing model to reconstruct the most accurate depiction of Uranus and Neptune's hues yet.
Not Limited to Voyager 2 Photos
In addition to Voyager 2 data, the researchers incorporated input from a spectrograph on the Hubble Space Telescope and another spectroscopic tool mounted on the Very Large Telescope of the European Southern Observatory in Chile.
Based on these findings, Uranus and Neptune demonstrate remarkably similar shades, although Neptune exhibits a hint of extra blue. This slight discrepancy can be attributed to Neptune's farther proximity from the Sun, resulting in a thinner fog layer covering the planet.
