Browsing: Neptune

Neptune is the eighth and farthest known planet from the Sun in our solar system. It is an ice giant, primarily made of water, ammonia, and methane over a possible rocky core. Discovered in 1846, Neptune’s presence was predicted mathematically before it was visually detected due to irregularities in the orbit of Uranus. It has a striking blue color, caused by the absorption of red light by methane in the atmosphere. Neptune is known for its strong wind speeds, some of the fastest in the solar system, reaching up to 2,100 kilometers per hour (1,300 miles per hour). The planet has a complex system of rings and 14 known moons, with Triton being the largest and geologically active, exhibiting geysers of nitrogen ice. Neptune takes about 164.8 Earth years to complete one orbit around the Sun and has only completed one orbit since its discovery.