• Key Information

  • Ariel

  • Type
    Moon (of Uranus)
  • Diameter
    720 miles
  • Distance from Uranus
    118,619 miles
  • Orbit Time
    2.520 days
  • Length of Day
    2.520 days
  • Time around Sun
    84.0205 Earth years
  • Atmosphere
    None
  • Temperature
    -351 °F
  • Date of Discovery
    William Lassell, 24 October 1851
  • Learning Point
  • Ariel was discovered by William Lassell along with the moon Umbriel, the third and fourth known moons of Uranus. The surface of the moon shows a lot of change, with evidence of the formation of plains and ridges on the surface.
  • Project
  • Draw Ariel with Uranus in the background.
  • Location
  • Located in
    Solar System, orbiting Uranus
  • Fun Facts
  • Though William Herschel had thought there were other moons when he found the first two moons of Uranus, it is unlikely they were real moons, and most liklely not Ariel.
  • The moon is named after a character which appears in both Alexander Pope and William Shakespeare's writings.
  • The crater Yangoor is not fully circular as a nearby ridge formation cut off part of the crater as it formed afterwards.