NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has taken a new detailed picture of Uranus and its satellites, capturing the planet's faint dust rings which have only been photographed twice before.
The latest photo was taken by a near-infrared camera (NIRCam) combining two 1.4-micron and 3.0-micron filters (1 micron = 0.0001 centimeter).
A dense haze, a polar cap unique to Uranus, is visible at the planet's north pole. In 2028, as the northern summer solstice approaches, this cap may become even brighter and face directly toward Earth, giving astronomers an excellent opportunity to study its north pole and closely examine the rings of Uranus from other angles.
This wider view of the Uranian system with Webb’s NIRCam instrument features the planet Uranus as well as six of its 27 known moons (most of which are too small and faint to be seen in this short exposure).
Near the edge of the polar haze, a bright spot and several fainter extended spots can be seen. Such clouds are typical of Uranus and are associated with storms passing through the planet.
Astronomers know about 13 rings of Uranus, and 11 of them are visible in the new photo, including two faint dust rings that are closer to the planet. Webb also captured many of Uranus' 27 satellites.