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Tom Nordheim, a planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (JHAPL<\/a>), is the person who gave us a peek into these icy depths. <\/p>\n \u201cTo find evidence of an ocean inside a small object like Miranda is incredibly surprising,\u201d said Nordheim, who co-authored the study. <\/p>\n His team\u2019s work challenges our understanding of Miranda while positing new questions about the potential for life on other celestial bodies.<\/p>\n Miranda\u2019s bizarre moonscape<\/p>\n Recall 1986 when Voyager 2<\/a>, NASA\u2019s intrepid spacecraft, beamed back the first close-up images of Miranda. It was a sight to behold.<\/p>\n A bizarre landscape that looked as if it had been stitched together from bits and pieces of different worlds. <\/p>\n From deep grooves and towering cliffs to mysterious trapezoid-shaped regions known as coronae, Miranda appeared to be a geological wonder. But what could have caused such a varied landscape?<\/p>\n What\u2019s the deal with Uranus?<\/p>\n Uranus<\/a> is one of the lesser-known planets in our solar system. Unlike the other planets, Uranus rotates on its side, so its axis is almost parallel to its orbit. <\/p>\n This tilt causes some extreme seasons \u2014 imagine a planet where each pole gets 42 years of continuous sunlight followed by 42 years of darkness. <\/p>\n Scientists think a massive collision with an Earth-sized object might have knocked it over early in its history.<\/p>\n Another interesting aspect is Uranus\u2019s atmosphere, which is rich in icy materials like water, ammonia, and methane. That methane is what gives the planet its signature blue-green color<\/a>. <\/p>\n Uranus<\/a> also has a set of faint rings and at least 27 moons, many named after Shakespearean characters like Miranda, which is the subject of this article, and Ariel. <\/p>\n Despite being discovered way back in 1781 by William Herschel, Uranus still holds many secrets, and researchers are eager to explore it further to understand more about these distant, icy worlds.<\/p>\n Hidden ocean on a moon named Miranda<\/p>\n Caleb Strom, a graduate student at the University of North Dakota<\/a>, and Alex Patthoff from the Planetary Science Institute<\/a> in Arizona joined Nordheim for this fascinating study.<\/p>\n They approached this mystery like detectives working a cold case, revisiting old Voyager 2 images and using modern computer modeling techniques to reconstruct Miranda\u2019s geologic past.<\/p>\n As Strom and his team mapped out Miranda\u2019s convoluted surface features and modeled different scenarios for its interior structure, a startling picture began to emerge. <\/p>\n Their findings suggest that around 100 to 500 million years ago, Miranda likely harbored a subsurface ocean, at least 62 miles deep, beneath a frozen crust no more than 19 miles thick.<\/p>\n \u201cThat result was a big surprise to the team,\u201d said Strom. The thought that a moon as small as Miranda could contain such a large ocean is not something scientists expected.<\/p>\n Tidal forces on the moon Miranda<\/p>\n Even more confusing is the fact that this ocean could have been warm enough to remain liquid, despite Miranda\u2019s incredible distance from the Sun. <\/p>\n The credit goes to a dance of gravitational forces played out between Miranda and her neighboring moons orbiting Uranus.<\/p>\n This phenomenon, known as orbital resonance<\/a>, can generate friction and heat within a moon\u2019s interior, enough to sustain a subsurface ocean.<\/p>\n Could Miranda still have a liquid ocean?<\/p>\n The case isn\u2019t closed yet. The team believes that Miranda\u2019s interior hasn\u2019t entirely frozen over. If it had, we would see specific surface features that just aren\u2019t there. <\/p>\n So, there\u2019s a good chance that Miranda still has a subsurface ocean, though likely thinner than before. <\/p>\n \u201cBut the suggestion of an ocean inside one of the most distant moons in the solar system is remarkable,\u201d remarked Strom.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t the first time a small moon has surprised us. Back in 2004, Enceladus<\/a>, one of Saturn\u2019s moons, revealed active geysers spewing water vapor and ice into space, hinting at a hidden ocean. Today, Enceladus is a prime target in the search for extraterrestrial life<\/a>.<\/p>\n Could the Miranda moon support life?<\/p>\n It\u2019s still too early to pack our bags for Miranda, but the possibility of it harboring life is tantalizing. However, as Nordheim points out, we still need more data to confirm if an ocean definitely exists.<\/p>\n While recent research has provided fresh insights into Uranus\u2019s moons, we\u2019ve barely scratched the surface. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re squeezing the last bit of science we can from Voyager 2\u2019s images,\u201d says Nordheim. <\/p>\n To truly understand Miranda\u2019s potential, we need to launch new missions to Uranus. Until then, we hold our breath and watch this icy moon with great anticipation.<\/p>\n Miranda, ocean worlds, and extraterrestrial life<\/p>\n In the grand scheme of our solar system, Miranda might just be the underdog story we didn\u2019t see coming. <\/p>\n This tiny moon, once thought to be a frozen, inactive world, could be hiding a vast ocean beneath its patchwork surface. <\/p>\n The idea that such a small body, orbiting one of the most distant planets, might have an environment capable of sustaining life is nothing short of mind-blowing.<\/p>\n All of this goes to show that there\u2019s so much left to discover out there. Revisiting old data with fresh eyes has opened up new possibilities and questions. <\/p>\n Maybe it\u2019s high time we head back to Uranus and take a closer look at Miranda and its neighboring moons.<\/p>\n The full study was published in The Planetary Science Journal<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2013<\/p>\n Like what you read? Subscribe to our newsletter<\/a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.<\/p>\n Check us out on EarthSnap<\/a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls<\/a> and Earth.com.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2013<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A recent study points to an exciting possibility: that Uranus\u2019s moon Miranda, located in the far reaches of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":277484,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[111,139,69,147,392],"class_list":["post-277483","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-space","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-science","tag-space"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=277483"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277483\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/277484"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=277483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=277483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=277483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Uranus\u2019](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/uranus-moon-miranda_Voyager-2_JHUAPL_NASA_1s.webp.webp\")
<\/a>Uranus\u2019 icy moon Miranda, captured by NASA\u2019s Voyager 2 spacecraft on Jan. 24, 1986. Credit: NASA\/Jet Propulsion Laboratory-Caltech. Click image to enlarge.<\/p>\n