It’s all over for Uranus.
The ice giant
is locked into a collision course
with the king of all planets
in our Solar System.
Jupiter.
OK, let’s get to know
our two planetary
prize fighters a little better.
You know,
before they both potentially
get blown into oblivion.
First, Jupiter.
The largest planet
in the Solar System.
Put all the other planets together,
and it’s still twice as massive.
But this monstrosity
has no solid surface.
It’s nearly all gas,
mostly made out of
hydrogen and helium.
In the other corner of the ring
is Uranus.
Even though it’s three times smaller
and 20 times less massive than Jupiter,
it’s the third largest planet
in the Solar System.
So don’t let the size difference fool you.
Underneath Uranus’ hydrogen and helium atmosphere,
there’s an abundance of water ice.
That’s why Uranus isn’t
a gas giant like Jupiter.
It’s an ice giant,
like its neighbor Neptune.
Of all the planets
in the Solar System,
Uranus is unique.
It rotates on its side.
All thanks to
an Earth-sized object
that slammed into it
billions of years ago.
So could the most epic collision
in the history of collisions
end with Uranus getting knocked
right side up?
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But if these planets collide,
that promise might be cut short.
You likely don’t track
Uranus’ whereabouts
in the night sky.
But if you did, you’d be in
for the realization
that the icy planet has somehow
slipped out of its usual orbit.
Commencing countdown
to collision.
On its way toward Jupiter,
Uranus would first need
to survive a close encounter
with the gas giant next door,
Saturn.
With all its colorful rings and many moons,
Saturn is twice as large
as the stinky blue planet.
But the two planets
have very similar
gravitational pulls.
So as they just barely brush
past one another,
Uranus could end up
sweeping up a moon or two
to add to its current
collection of 27.
Uranus would now
be barrelling down
onto its opponent.
The closer it gets, the clearer
the picture would become
of just how incredibly
enormous that opponent is.
Jupiter is over 20 times
as massive as Uranus.
And even though it doesn’t
technically have a surface,
its surface gravity is
more than twice as strong.
Maybe Uranus was barking up
the wrong planetary tree.
Except it’s too late
to turn back now.
Besides, you’ve got
front-row seats
to this epic fight.
It wouldn’t be smooth
sailing right up
into Jupiter’s atmosphere.
First, Uranus
would have to elbow its way
through some of Jupiter’s 80 moons.
The first of these
would be Pasiphae.
There wouldn’t be much to worry about here.
Pasiphae is very small.
It’s more than 60 times
smaller than our Moon.
Uranus would pass right by it
and the remaining minefield
of Jupiter’s moons
completely unscathed.
Now the planetary heavyweights
would be getting close.
But how this collision would unfold
would all depend on Uranus’
angle of impact.
If it somehow managed
to slip into Jupiter’s orbit,
then the two would be
on course for a head-on collision.
In this event,
the atmospheres of both planets
would compress
as they came into contact.
This would result in
both of their temperatures
rapidly increasing.
And then, BOOM!
No, I’m just kidding.
With no oxygen on either planet,
they wouldn’t ignite in fiery explosions.
But if you’re only in it
for the spectacle, don’t worry.
The collision
would still be very violent.
The two planets would make
full-body contact, combining their mass
along the way.
Like a Juranus.
Or maybe a U-piter.
One thing that wouldn’t happen though
is Jupiter turning into a star.
In order to become a brown dwarf,
it would need to weigh
13 times more than it does now.
Or 85 times more
if it wanted to become a low-mass star.
Sadly, adding Uranus
under its belt would only increase
Jupiter’s mass by a fraction.
Now, more realistically, Uranus
would hit Jupiter from the side.
This collision would also begin
with the two atmospheres compressing.
Except instead of merging
into one,
they’d both remain somewhat intact
but have a lot of their gases
thrown off into space.
So after this epic encounter,
we’d still be left with
eight planets in the Solar System.
Though these two would
certainly look a little different.
Jupiter would look like
a thinner version of its formerly
huge, gassy self.
And Uranus could end up being
not much more than a solid
rocky core covered in
water and ammonia.
If things unfolded like this,
then that could leave
Saturn to take over the throne
of the largest planet
in the Solar System.
Well, that makes me think.
What would happen
if the two gas giants
collided in all their former glory?
Well, that’s a story for another WHAT IF.