Scribd
Upload
156 views4 pages

Neptune Fact Sheet

Neptune is the eighth and farthest known planet from the Sun. It is about four times larger than Earth but has a very low density and average temperature of around -218 Celsius. Neptune has 14 known moons and a prominent ring system composed of dark particles. With powerful winds up to 580 meters per second, Neptune's atmosphere is composed primarily of hydrogen and helium with small amounts of methane and ammonia ice clouds.

Uploaded by

B Rocker
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
156 views4 pages

Neptune Fact Sheet

Neptune is the eighth and farthest known planet from the Sun. It is about four times larger than Earth but has a very low density and average temperature of around -218 Celsius. Neptune has 14 known moons and a prominent ring system composed of dark particles. With powerful winds up to 580 meters per second, Neptune's atmosphere is composed primarily of hydrogen and helium with small amounts of methane and ammonia ice clouds.

Uploaded by

B Rocker
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 4

Neptune Fact Sheet

Neptune/Earth Comparison

Bulk parameters

Ratio
Neptune Earth (Neptune/Earth)
Mass (1024 kg) 102.413 5.9724 17.15
Volume (1010 km3) 6, 254 108.321 57.74
Equatorial radius (1 bar level) (km) 24,764 6,378.1 3.883
Polar radius (1 bar level) (km) 24,341 6,356.8 3.829
Volumetric mean radius (km) 24,622 6,371.0 3.865
Ellipticity (Flattening) 0.01708 0.00335 5.10
Mean density (kg/m3) 1,638 5,514 0.297
Gravity (eq., 1 bar) (m/s2) 11.15 9.80 1.14
Acceleration (eq., 1 bar) (m/s2) 11.00 9.78 1.12
Escape velocity (km/s) 23.5 11.19 2.10
GM (x 106 km3/s2) 6.8351 0.39860 17.15
Bond albedo 0.290 0.306 0.95
Geometric albedo 0.442 0.434 1.02
V-band magnitude V(1,0) -6.94 -3.99 -
Solar irradiance (W/m2) 1.508 1,361.0 0.0011
Black-body temperature (K) 46.6 254.3 0.183
J2 (x 10-6) 3411. 1082.63 3.151
Number of natural satellites 14 1
Planetary ring system Yes No

Orbital parameters

Ratio
Neptune Earth (Neptune/Earth)
Semimajor axis (106 km) 4,495.060 149.596 30.048
Sidereal orbit period (days) 60,189. 365.256 164.79
Tropical orbit period (days) 59,799.9 365.242 163.73
Perihelion (106 km) 4,444.449 147.092 30.215
Aphelion (106 km) 4,545.671 152.099 29.886
Synodic period (days) 367.49 - -
Mean orbital velocity (km/s) 5.43 29.78 0.182
Max. orbital velocity (km/s) 5.50 30.29 0.182
Min. orbital velocity (km/s) 5.37 29.29 0.183
Orbit inclination (deg) 1.769 0.000 -
Orbit eccentricity 0.0113 0.0167 0.677
Sidereal rotation period (hrs) 16.11* 23.9345 0.673
Length of day (hrs) 16.11 24.0000 0.671
Obliquity to orbit (deg) 28.32 23.44 1.208
Inclination of equator (deg) 28.32 23.44 1.208

* Magnetic coordinates (as determined by the Voyager 2 Radio Science experiment)

Neptune Observational Parameters

Discoverer: Johann Gottfried Galle (based on predictions by


John Couch Adams and Urbain Leverrier)
Discovery Date: 23 September 1846

Distance from Earth


Minimum (106 km) 4305.9
Maximum (106 km) 4687.3
Apparent diameter from Earth
Maximum (seconds of arc) 2.4
Minimum (seconds of arc) 2.2
Mean values at opposition from Earth
Distance from Earth (106 km) 4347.31
Apparent diameter (seconds of arc) 2.3
Apparent visual magnitude 7.7
Maximum apparent visual magnitude 7.67

Neptune Mean Orbital Elements (J2000)

Semimajor axis (AU) 30.06896348


Orbital eccentricity 0.00858587
Orbital inclination (deg) 1.76917
Longitude of ascending node (deg) 131.72169
Longitude of perihelion (deg) 44.97135
Mean Longitude (deg) 304.88003

North Pole of Rotation

Right Ascension: 299.36 + 0.70 sin N


Declination : 43.46 - 0.51 cos N
Reference Date : 12:00 UT 1 Jan 2000 (JD 2451545.0)
N = 357.85 + 52.316T degrees
T = Julian centuries from reference date

Neptunian Magnetosphere

Model GSFC-O8

Dipole field strength: 0.142 Gauss-Rn3


Dipole tilt to rotational axis: 46.9 degrees
Longitude of tilt: 288 degrees (IAU convention)
Dipole offset: 0.485 Rn
Surface (1 Rn) field strength: ~0.1 - 0.9 Gauss

Rn denotes Neptunian model radius, here defined to be 24,765 km

Neptunian Atmosphere
Surface Pressure: >>1000 bars
Temperature at 1 bar: 72 K (-201 C)
Temperature at 0.1 bar: 55 K (-218 C)
Density at 1 bar: 0.45 kg/m3
Wind speeds: 0-580 m/s
Scale height: 19.1 - 20.3 km
Mean molecular weight: 2.53 - 2.69
Atmospheric composition (by volume, uncertainty in parentheses)
Major: Molecular hydrogen (H2) - 80.0% (3.2%); Helium (He) - 19.0% (3.2%);
Methane (CH4) 1.5% (0.5%)
Minor (ppm): Hydrogen Deuteride (HD) - 192; Ethane (C2H6) - 1.5
Aerosols: Ammonia ice, water ice, ammonia hydrosulfide, methane ice(?)

Notes on the factsheets - definitions of parameters, units, notes on sub- and superscripts, etc.

Neptunian Satellite Fact Sheet


Neptunian Rings Fact Sheet

Planetary Fact Table - metric units


Planetary Fact Table - U.S. units
Planetary Fact Table - Earth ratio

Neptune Home Page


Directory to other Planetary Fact Sheets

Author/Curator:
Dr. David R. Williams, [email protected]
NSSDCA, Mail Code 690.1
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, MD 20771
+1-301-286-1258

NASA Official: Ed Grayzeck, [email protected]


Last Updated: 25 November 2020, DRW

You might also like