But when Voyager 2 got an up-close look at Uranus in 1986, scientists were able to glean some insights that, while confounding, at least shed some light on a crucial characteristic that seemed to set the planet apart from other giants like Jupiter.

Voyager 2's 1986 flyby of Uranus, the main source of our knowledge of the icy planet, could have come at the same time as a weird plasma burst from the sun.