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== Physical characteristics ==
== Physical characteristics ==
Uranus is a [[gas giant]] having a radius of 25,559 km (15,882 miles). Uranus’s atmosphere is about 83% [[hydrogen]], 15% [[helium]], and 2% [[methane]]. The methane, more than any other constituent, gives Uranus its color.<ref name=rst/>
Uranus is a [[gas giant]] having a radius of 25,559 km (15,882 miles). Uranus's atmosphere is about 83% [[hydrogen]], 15% [[helium]], and 2% [[methane]]. The methane, more than any other constituent, gives Uranus its color.<ref name=rst/>
=== Atmosphere ===
=== Atmosphere ===
# Why is its orbit less eccentric than those of all the other planets except only those of [[Venus]], [[Neptune]], and Earth?
# Why is its orbit less eccentric than those of all the other planets except only those of [[Venus]], [[Neptune]], and Earth?
# Why is Uranus's orbit less inclined to the ecliptic than is that of any planet except Earth?
# Why is Uranus's orbit less inclined to the ecliptic than is that of any planet except Earth?
# Why are the orbits of Uranus's moons so slightly inclined with respect to Uranus's present equator?<ref name=AiG>Psarris, Spike. "[http://www.answersingenesis.org/creation/v24/i3/uranus.asp Entry for Uranus]." ''Creation'', 24(3):38-40, June 2002. Now hosted by [[Answers in Genesis]]. Accessed April 25, 2008.</ref> Indeed, the vertical orientation of Uranus's moons and of some of its rings was already well-known to astronomers before the Voyager 2 flyby. If the moons formed before the collision, then another series of precisely timed collisions would have been required to change the azimuths of all the orbits, ''and'' the rings—an absurd violation of [[Occam's razor]]. And if they formed after the collision, then in the absence of any condensing gas cloud, they ought to be inclined at random.
# Why are the orbits of Uranus's moons so slightly inclined with respect to Uranus's present equator?<ref name=AiG>Psarris, Spike. "[http://www.answersingenesis.org/creation/v24/i3/uranus.asp Entry for Uranus]." ''Creation'', 24(3):38-40, June 2002. Now hosted by [[Answers in Genesis]]. Accessed April 25, 2008.</ref> Indeed, the vertical orientation of Uranus's moons and of some of its rings was already well known to astronomers before the Voyager 2 flyby. If the moons formed before the collision, then another series of precisely timed collisions would have been required to change the azimuths of all the orbits, ''and'' the rings—an absurd violation of [[Occam's razor]]. And if they formed after the collision, then in the absence of any condensing gas cloud, they ought to be inclined at random.
Naturalists try to explain that last by suggesting that Uranus's moons are leftover debris from the collision that tilted its axis. However, Uranus's moons make up only one hundredth of one percent of the mass of the planet, and an impact violent enough to knock the giant over would have produced far more debris than that. (Earth's [[Moon]], also supposed to be the result of a giant collision involving its primary, has a mass of 1.23% that of earth.)<ref name=AiG/><ref name=Psarris>Psarris, Spike. ''Our Created Solar System'' Seattle Creation Conference, 2006.</ref> Moreover, not only are the moons of Uranus oriented well to Uranus's equator, but many of them orbit retrograde to Uranus's own rotation.
Naturalists try to explain that last by suggesting that Uranus's moons are leftover debris from the collision that tilted its axis. However, Uranus's moons make up only one hundredth of one percent of the mass of the planet, and an impact violent enough to knock the giant over would have produced far more debris than that. (Earth's [[Moon]], also supposed to be the result of a giant collision involving its primary, has a mass of 1.23% that of earth.)<ref name=AiG/><ref name=Psarris>Psarris, Spike. ''Our Created Solar System'' Seattle Creation Conference, 2006.</ref> Moreover, not only are the moons of Uranus oriented well to Uranus's equator, but many of them orbit retrograde to Uranus's own rotation.