Scientist for a Day

Aaron Heisel

Grade: 8

School: C.R. Anderson

Teacher: Jeremy Muir

City: Helena, Montana

Topic: Oberon

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More than 500,000 kilometers from Earth, a mysterious moon bearing the name of a Shakespearean fairy king orbits the gas giant Uranus. Little has been learned about Oberon since William Herschel discovered it in 1787. Modern technology could unlock the mysteries of this moon, advancing the scientific knowledge of the universe and providing clues to the moon’s origins, composition, and history. For these reasons, further exploration of Oberon is justified.

Unlike most moons and planets, Oberon’s history has not been fully examined. One of the moon’s mysterious features lies at the bottom of its heavily cratered surface. The substance could be water, which may suggest life forms having existed there. Ice covering the moon’s surface indicates the moon has been stable since its formation. All of this could be verified or disproven with continued investigation.

Oberon has a fascinating geography and appearance. Oberon has many craters and a 4-mile-tall mountain on its surface! Along with the intriguing substance in the craters, Oberon may have caves, all of which could point to the possibility of life and the moon’s origins. Many have hypothesized that humans were not alone in this universe. For centuries people have been trying to prove that theory. The presence of water may indicate where to start looking for life. In addition, Oberon’s geography could lead to an understanding of not only this moon’s history but others like it. Exploring Oberon’s features would enable us to learn about this moon shrouded in mystery.

We could discover the nature of the dark substance in the craters. We could see what Voyager 2 failed to see. The project would be difficult considering Oberon’s distance from Earth, but it is not impossible. We put humans on the moon in 1969! We are now in 2021, a year of exciting new possibilities.