Studying the mystery of Uranus’s curiously weak radiation belts

When the Voyager 2 spacecraft visited Uranus almost 50 years ago, it discovered a magnetic mystery. Unlike on most planets, the ice giant’s magnetic field is tilted roughly 60° away from its spin axis, creating an asymmetric magnetic field that varies in strength. Understanding the reason behind this anomaly is a key goal of NASA’s proposed flagship mission to the ice giants. When the Voyager 2 spacecraft visited Uranus almost 50 years ago, it discovered a magnetic mystery. Unlike on most planets, the ice giant’s magnetic field is tilted roughly 60° away from its spin axis, creating an asymmetric magnetic field that varies in strength. Understanding the reason behind this anomaly is a key goal of NASA’s proposed flagship mission to the ice giants. Planetary Sciences Phys.org – latest science and technology news stories