The Atmosphere of Uranus

Cur r en t knowledge of t he a t m o s p h e r e of U r a n u s is rev iewed a n d specific ob jec t ives are sugges ted for sa te l l i te miss ions to U r a n u s . The a n o m a l o u s compos i t ion of U r a n u s m a k e s d e t e r m i n a t i o n s of i ts a t m o s p h e r i c compos i t i on pa r t i cu l a r ly va luab le for t e s t i n g theor ies of solar s y s t e m evolu t ion . The weakness of i t s a t m o s p h e r i c h e a t i n g m a k e s t he d e t e r m i n a t i o n of i t s a t m o s p h e r i c s t r u c t u r e a n d d y n a m i c s pa r t i cu l a r l y va luab l e for t e s t i ng theor ies of a tmosphe r i c behav io r . The large ax ia l i nc l ina t ion of U r a n u s implies a n a n o m a l o u s l a t i t u d i n a l v a r i a t i o n of t e m p e r a t u r e a n d d y n a m i c s d i f ferent f rom t h a t of t h e o t h e r p lane t s .