Uranus and Neptune May Be Rock-Dominated Planets, Study Suggests

Uranus and Neptune may not be true ice giants after all. New research using advanced hybrid simulations suggests the distant planets could be dominated by rocky material rather than water-rich ices. The findings challenge decades of planetary models and may help explain the planets’ unusual, non-dipolar magnetic fields. Scientists say future dedicated spacecraft missions will be essential to confirm what truly lies beneath the blue atmospheres of these mysterious outer worlds.