Uranus Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. Its name is a reference to the Greek god of the sky, Uranus (mythology), Uranus (Caelus), who, according to Greek mythology, was the great-grandfather of Ares (Mars (mythology), Mars), grandfather ...

was discovered in 1781 and has comparatively rarely been featured in fiction since then. The earliest such works, such as Stanley G. Weinbaum's 1935 short story " The Planet of Doubt" and

Clifton B. Kruse Clifton may refer to: People *Clifton (surname) *Clifton (given name) Places Australia *Clifton, Queensland, a town **Shire of Clifton * Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong *Clifton, Western Australia Canada * Clifton, Nova Scoti ...

's 1936 short story " Code of the Spaceways", portray it as having a solid surface; in the former, humans landing on Uranus encounter hostile

aliens Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, intelligent extrate ...

. Later works depict it more accurately as a

gaseous planet The giant planets constitute a diverse type of planet much larger than Earth. They are usually primarily composed of low-boiling-point materials (volatiles), rather than rock or other solid matter, but massive solid planets can also exist. The ...

; for instance,

Cecelia Holland Cecelia Holland (born December 31, 1943) is an American historical fiction novelist. Early life and education Holland was born December 31, 1943, in Henderson, Nevada. She grew up in Metuchen, New Jersey, where she started writing at age 12, rec ...

's 1976 novel ''

Floating Worlds Cecelia Holland (born December 31, 1943) is an American historical fiction novelist. Early life and education Holland was born December 31, 1943, in Henderson, Nevada. She grew up in Metuchen, New Jersey, where she started writing at age 12, rec ...

'' depicts floating cities in the Uranian atmosphere. Towards the end of the 20th century, there was a slight uptick in appearances by Uranus in science fiction, including the 1985 short story " Dies Irae" by

Charles Sheffield Charles Sheffield (25 June 1935 – 2 November 2002), an English-born mathematician, physicist and science-fiction writer, served as a President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America and of the American Astronautical Society. ...

about life in the atmosphere and the 1999 short story "

Into the Blue Abyss Into, entering or changing form, may also refer to: * INTO University Partnerships, a British business * ''Into'' (album), an album by the Rasmus * ''Into'' (magazine), a digital magazine owned by Grindr * Into, a male Finnish name * Irish Natio ...

" by

Geoffrey A. Landis Geoffrey Alan Landis (; born May 28, 1955) is an American aerospace engineer and author, working for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on planetary exploration, interstellar propulsion, solar power and photovoltaics. He ...

where there is life in the ocean below. Of Uranus' moons,

Ariel Ariel may refer to: Film and television *Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award * ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki * ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', 1989 and 1991 anime video series based on the novel series ...

was discovered in 1851 and appears in J. Harvey Haggard's 1930s novella "

Evolution Satellite Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation t ...

", and Miranda was discovered in 1948 and appears in the 1993 short story "

Into the Miranda Rift Into, entering or changing form, may also refer to: * INTO University Partnerships, a British business * ''Into'' (album), an album by the Rasmus * ''Into'' (magazine), a digital magazine owned by Grindr * Into, a male Finnish name * Irish Natio ...

" by G. David Nordley.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Uranus In Fiction Fiction about ice giants