Uranus and Neptune: Origin, Evolution and Internal Structure

TL;DR

This review summarizes current knowledge and open questions about Uranus and Neptune's composition, internal structure, formation, and thermal evolution, emphasizing the need for improved observational data to understand these planets and similar exoplanets.

Contribution

It consolidates existing research on Uranus and Neptune, highlighting uncertainties in their internal structures and proposing directions for future observational constraints.

Findings

Uncertainty in internal structures due to non-adiabatic interiors

Importance of gravitational and magnetic field measurements

Potential insights from improved atmospheric data

Abstract

There are still many open questions regarding the nature of Uranus and Neptune, the outermost planets in the Solar System. In this review we summarize the current-knowledge about Uranus and Neptune with a focus on their composition and internal structure, formation including potential subsequent giant impacts, and thermal evolution. We present key open questions and discuss the uncertainty in the internal structures of the planets due to the possibility of non-adiabatic and inhomogeneous interiors. We also provide the reasoning for improved observational constraints on their fundamental physical parameters such as their gravitational and magnetic fields, rotation rates, and deep atmospheric composition and temperature. Only this way will we be able to improve our understating of these planetary objects, and the many similar-sized objects orbiting other stars.