You are not logged in.
This could easily go in one of those Alpha Centauri topics or Nuclear Power or Venus/Titan topics or Generation ships.
Beyond our system Exo Planets like Uranus and Neptune could be common, When look at other Stars most planets are found outside the habitable zone, planets have been found by Radial velocity method or Doppler spectroscopy, transit or dimming of the star or Transit-timing variation, an actual wobble of the star or Astrometry and for large planets magnify a background star Gravitational microlensing and now Direct Imaging from ground telescopes and JWST. Rare events have been found by Polarimetry, there might be other future exotic methods such as Magnetospheric radio and other techniques but very few of these searches find Earth like Planets, most Planets are 'Hot Jupiters' or Ice Giants like Uranus Neptune or Gas giants like Jupiter Saturn, there are also hot rocky hellish worlds.
The colonization, it would be done with robots first or Cyborgs not humans, Nuclear powered travel would be common place. These are perhaps some of the worst places you can 'Live' they might have similar Temperature −224 °C or — minus 371.56 degrees °F, the Neptune temperature of 353 F (minus 214 C), Uranus can blow clouds up to 560 miles per hour (900 kilometers per hour), while Neptune's destructive winds can reach up to 1,500 miles per hour (2,400 kilometers per hour). Why would anyone go there with a person or robot, for the same reason we think today of flying a Balloon on Titan or Venus. There might be a sweet spot where the atmosphere mellows out, once humans arrive on your village station you will need to make extra water and oxygen. Also because people think of colonizing the Galaxy, we would need to be able to live in any other star system. Perhaps 'Earth-Like' planets might not be common but the Rare Earth hypothesis is true. Perhaps highly pressurized toxic water worlds or large rocky hot gas worlds might be more common or Hot Jupiter pegasean planets or 'Ice giant' world like Uranus or Neptune.
We do not currently have the biological technology or material science or speed for such a trip, the Parker Solar Probe went 153,454 miles per hour or 246,960 mph Dawn held the Solar-electric propulsion record a velocity change in space of 25,700 mph or 41,360 kph
Positives - the Gravity will be slightly Lower or slightly Higher than Earth, the Moons of Neptune and Uranus and the L points could be a site for a type of Array or long baseline interferometry.
Having a station on these worlds might help us understand the Kuiper belt disc and Oort cloud.
Neptune will be 110% of Earth G while Uranus will be 86% Earth gravity.
Working in the atmosphere of these worlds might be like how scientists do long tours of Antarctica.
For now the technology is an impossible, 5-kilometre diameter sphere balloon or 3.1 miles will perhaps lift two Empire State Buildings. However maybe it will be done one day and having Uranus, Neptune and the Moons colonized you might be able to start shipping low tech mineral products around the Solar system, for example railgun product to Titan and other worlds. The people and robots would face many challenges finding raw materials needed to survive, sucking material in from the atmosphere to process while dealing with the winds and other hostile conditions, finding a way to jump-start the massively complex biosphere. Impossible Cloud cities will perhaps make the Earth's Ocean easier to colonize or give us the technology to live inside comfortable Biosphere villages on Denali also known as Mount McKinley, Mont Blanc, Mount Elbrus, Aconcagua a mountain in the the Andes mountain range, in Mendoza Province, Argentina, Vinson Massif in Antarctica, some of Earth's highest mountains, Kangchenjunga, K2, Mount Everest. If we can make floating Biosphere work offworld then breakthroughs in these technologies will make living on some of Earth's hostile zones easy, space tech from from these projectsgoes back to Earth and life will be easier. At least two Robot crewed spaceships would be sent to each destination, four in total, an orbiter would contain life plant, a Satellite starship with life, for example guinea pigs, other fish or animal insect to test 'life support' while an Airship would go down into the atmosphere and assemble itself. The robots would take a few Earth days to do all assessments and make their Airship village ready, robots might drop a line or pipe or other flying robots to mine water, ammonia and methane, there might be large levels of ammonium sulfide, hydrogen sulfide, the third most abundant constituent of the Uranian atmosphere is methane (CH4) and Spitzer may have found evidence for ethane (C2H6), acetylene (C2H2), methylacetylene (CH3C2H), diacetylene (C2HC2H) carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. The Balloon village would make itself, upon Assembly of the Airship Biosphere the crew of animal and plant life would drop from orbit and then rendezvous with the Airship Village.
If a type of Biosphere or a human can survive on these impossible worlds then maybe in the far future with breakthroughs in fast propulsion it would be possible to begin expanding beyond our own Solar System and have life from Earth go out there and stay in other star systems permanently.
Last edited by Mars_B4_Moon (2023-09-18 11:29:31)
Offline
Like button can go here
Some other discussion
Why No Gaseous Moons?
https://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=2937
Colonizable worlds in the Solar System - How far can we go
https://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=327
Last edited by Mars_B4_Moon (2023-09-18 11:28:25)
Offline
Like button can go here
For SpaceNut .... this topic contains the word "Uranus" and it appears to be the only topic we have that does so.
This post is about a remarkable celestial event that will occur tomorrow, July 4, 2026.
Uranus and Mars will pass within a short distance of each other as seen from Earth.
Here is Gemini's summary of the event:
Conversation with Gemini
Uranus in View of Mars from Earth - please let this new title settle before we start the discussion
Consider it settled. We are completely on your page.
Whenever you are ready to dive into "Uranus in View of Mars from Earth," just say the word. Whether we are talking about a unique astronomical alignment, a sci-fi narrative concept, or a specific observational perspective, I am ready when you are.
What's our first port of call for this discussion?
***
Thanks for your kind response to this new title .... I monitor the movement of Mars each day, in connection with the Business Calendar for Mars I am studying. Today, Uranus showed up in the view provided by TheSkyLive.com. My opening question is: How often does this occur? Uranus has a distant orbit, and Mars has an eccentric orbit. Coincidence like this may be rare.
***
It is an incredible piece of timing that you noticed this today! What you are seeing on TheSkyLive is the buildup to a remarkably close astronomical event: a Mars-Uranus conjunction. In fact, they reach their exact alignment early tomorrow morning, July 4, 2026.To answer your opening question:
A standard conjunction where Mars "laps" Uranus in the night sky happens roughly every 1 year and 11 months (about every 703 days).
Because Uranus crawls through its massive orbit so slowly (taking 84 Earth years to circle the Sun), Mars manages to catch up to it and pass it from our viewpoint just under every two years.
Why This Specific Coincidence is Rare
While they pass each other roughly every two years, they rarely get this close to one another in our field of view. The planes of their orbits are tilted at slightly different angles relative to Earth's orbit (the ecliptic plane). Usually, when Mars passes Uranus, they might be separated by a degree or two—seemingly passing "above" or "below" one another.
What makes the July 4, 2026 alignment highly unusual and rare is the extreme proximity:
The Separation: They will pass within roughly 11 arcminutes of each other.
The Scale: To put that in perspective, the full Moon is about 30 arcminutes across. This means Mars and Uranus will be separated by just over a third of the width of a full Moon.
Having them line up so precisely on the exact same vertical and horizontal plane from Earth's perspective is a genuine treat for anyone tracking planetary movements.
Orbital Mechanics at Play
Your intuition about the orbits is spot on.Mars' Eccentricity: Mars has a notably eccentric (oval-shaped) orbit compared to Earth. Depending on where Mars is along its path when it catches Uranus, the speed of Mars changes, and its distance from Earth shifts dramatically.
Uranus' Distance: Because Uranus is roughly 19 to 20 Astronomical Units away, its apparent motion against the background stars is incredibly slow. It acts almost like a stationary marker that Mars sweeps past.
For your daily tracking and Martian calendar studies, this particular event serves as a brilliant cosmic milestone. Are you looking to calculate how this alignment falls relative to specific longitudes or specific seasons on Mars?
***
Thank you for your analysis of the situation, for your research to find the history of this cosmic dance, and for your presentation! I'll post our conversation in a post in the small International forum dedicated to the Mars enterprise.
***
That sounds like a wonderful plan! Members of a forum dedicated to the Mars enterprise will absolutely appreciate the precise orbital mechanics behind this—especially the timing of tomorrow's close approach.Since you are sharing this with your community, here is a clean, structured summary of our discussion that you can easily copy and paste into your forum post. It is formatted to be clear and readable on standard message boards.
The Mars-Uranus Conjunction of July 2026
The Event:
From our vantage point on Earth, Mars is passing incredibly close to Uranus in the night sky. The exact conjunction occurs early in the morning on July 4, 2026.How Often Does This Happen?
Synodic Period: Mars overtakes Uranus from Earth's perspective roughly every 1 year and 11 months (approximately every 703 days).
The Outer Marker: Because Uranus takes 84 Earth years to orbit the Sun, it moves incredibly slowly against the background stars, acting as a nearly stationary milestone that Mars sweeps past roughly every two years.
Why This Specific Alignment is Rare:
While the two planets cross paths every two years, they rarely get this close. Because planetary orbits are tilted at slightly different angles, Mars usually passes well "above" or "below" Uranus.Tomorrow's alignment is unique due to its extreme proximity:
Extreme Proximity: The two planets will be separated by roughly 11 arcminutes.
Visual Scale: For comparison, the full Moon spans about 30 arcminutes in the sky. This means Mars and Uranus will be separated by just over a third of the width of a full Moon—an exceptionally tight alignment.
Orbital Dynamics at Play:
Martian Eccentricity: Mars has a highly eccentric (oval) orbit. Depending on where Mars is along its path during a conjunction, its speed and distance from Earth vary significantly, making the exact timing and geometry of each conjunction unique.
Observational Note: For those tracking Martian movements daily or studying Martian calendars, this event provides a striking, highly precise cosmic milestone.
Good luck with the forum post! If your community has any follow-up questions about the orbital math, angles, or how this looks from the Martian surface itself, just let me know and we can dive right back in.
(th)
Offline
Like button can go here