How Long Would It Take To Get To Neptune (And Why)?

How Long Would It Take To Get To Neptune (And Why)?

Exact Answer: 12 Years

Some people never think beyond the planet earth, but there are a total of 9 planets, excluding the Sun, the Moon, and the Earth. Yet, according to some, even the moon is considered a planet. The Sun, for example, is certainly beyond anybody’s reach because of its temperature, and yet, there is a belief that the other planets can be reached.

Some countries invest a lot in space science and study, while some countries just take it to the next level by even taking steps to reach those planets and understand them. NASA is the first thing that comes to anybody’s mind when they think about space science. NASA sure have kept their name and standards by taking various steps to reach the planets far and beyond.

27

How Long Would It Take To Get To Neptune?

PlanetTime
Venus15 months
Uranus and Neptune8.5 years
Jupiter6 years
Saturn7 years

Mars One even announced the final 100 candidates for its one-way trip to Mars and in the final selection, about 33 Americans were on the list.

Every country in the world seeks the help of NASA and NASA helps many countries with their research and technology development in the field of space science and astronomy. Yet, one of the biggest research of all time, how long it takes to reach all those various planets, is still a question mark in some cases.

According to NASA, there are about 10 planets that have been noted down in research. The planets, including the moon, are Mercury, Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. Many spacecraft, ships, and satellites have noted the movements of these planets, but some planets were even set foot on, by the best astronauts the world has ever seen.

The most famous spaceships that are noted in history are the ones that reach the planets first. It took Messenger about 147 days to reach the Mercury in the 1970s, but later, as technology developed, everything started speeding up.

One planet that many don’t think about, is Neptune, which is also called the Giant Planet, and also the Eighth Wanderer. Neptune is called the giant planet because it is around four times wider than the Earth. The reason it is known as the eighth wanderer is that it orbits both the sun and a star.

Why Does It Take That Long To Get To Neptune?

It is also the eighth planet in the solar system and is located at a distance of around 4.5 billion kilometers away from the sun, which is about 2.8 billion miles.

It just takes around 16 hours for the Neptune to complete one complete rotation, while on the other hand, it takes about 165 days for the Earth to orbit the sun. The time taken by Neptune is called a Neptunian day, and the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun is known as a Neptunian year.

Voyager 1 was the first spacecraft that was set out to reach Neptune and other planets that including Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus alongside Neptune. Yet, it failed to reach any. Technology developed and this meant the space science research centers made sure to make any technical changes.

After a very long journey, Voyager 2 was the only spacecraft that ever reached Neptune, and after that, no spacecraft ever reached the Neptune to study it up that close. It took Voyager 2 about 8.5 years to reach Neptune.

Conclusion

Neptune is also called the ice giant, and most of the mass of Neptune is icy materials, where the mass mostly contains methane, ammonia, and water. The atmosphere of Neptune is made up of methane, atomic helium, and molecular hydrogen. There was no life found when Voyager 2 reached Neptune, and Neptune has around 14 moons, which were named after Greek mythology.

Neptune has around five main rings, four more ring arcs, and they are clumps of debris formed by the gravity from nearby moons around Neptune. There is another fact, which states that, because of Pluto’s elliptical orbit, Pluto is closer to the sun than Neptune, which is a very less known fact.

References

  1. https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/JB085iB01p00225
  2. https://science.sciencemag.org/content/246/4936/1473.abstract
dot 1
One request?

I’ve put so much effort writing this blog post to provide value to you. It’ll be very helpful for me, if you consider sharing it on social media or with your friends/family. SHARING IS ♥️

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *