Looking Ahead to Neptune

Abstract

One of the fascinating and enduring truths of planetary science is that no two planets are really much alike. Yet Neptune often suffers from being perceived as a repeat version of Uranus. Countless presentations and articles have described some aspect of Uranus in detail, then touched briefly on Neptune - almost as an afterthought. This situation is perhaps inevitable, since these planets are alike in size, density, rotation, atmospheric composition, and possibly other properties as well. Nonetheless, we already have plenty of evidence that Uranus and Neptune are quite individual, with differences that intrigue scientists and will provide the most interest during August's Voyager encounter.

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