Uranus has never looked better. Really.

Webb's first glimpse at this ice giant highlights bright atmospheric features, as well as 11 of the planet’s 13 rings. Only Voyager 2 and Keck (with adaptive optics) have imaged the planet's faintest rings before, and never as clearly as this.

Uranus rotates on its side, causing its poles to experience 42 years of sunlight and 42 years of darkness. (It takes 84 years to orbit the Sun.) When Voyager flew by Uranus in 1986, it was summer at its south pole. Currently, the south pole is out of view, facing the darkness of space.

Check out the polar cap (bright white area) on the right side of the image. Webb reveals a subtle enhanced brightening at its center. This polar cap appears in the direct sunlight of summer and vanishes in the fall. Webb's data will help us to understand this mystery.

This was only a 12-minute exposure image! And It's just the tip of the ice(planet)berg for what Webb will uncover. Read more: www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2023/nasa-s-webb-scores-anot...

Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, with image processing by Joseph DePasquale (STSci)