This Is How Much You’d Weigh On Neptune

Written by Nilani Thiyagarajah
Published: August 28, 2022
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When you can’t look anywhere without feeling like the Sun is in your eyes, you might feel like it might be better to be further away from the Sun. For example, you may think about going to live on Neptune.

Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun, making it the most distant of all the actual planets (now that the official stance on Pluto is that it’s a dwarf planet).

But what would living on Neptune actually be like? So many things would be different, including how much you’d weigh on Neptune. Read on to learn more about this amazing giant ice planet!

How Much Would You Weigh on Neptune?

Abstract Neptune planet generated texture background

People and objects on Neptune would weigh 110% of their weight on Earth.

©iStock.com/PandaWild

Neptune has no solid surface on which you would be able to stand. The atmosphere is made up mostly of gases, primarily hydrogen, helium, and methane. Deeper in the planet are liquid materials.

Pretending this isn’t the case, though, if you were to step on a scale on some hypothetical surface on Neptune, you would weigh 110% of what you do on Earth.

The following table shows what individuals of different masses would weigh on Neptune (rounded to the nearest whole number):

Weight on EarthWeight on Neptune
100 pounds110 pounds
105 pounds116 pounds
110 pounds121 pounds
115 pounds127 pounds
120 pounds132 pounds
125 pounds138 pounds
130 pounds143 pounds
135 pounds149 pounds
140 pounds154 pounds
145 pounds160 pounds
150 pounds165 pounds
155 pounds171 pounds
160 pounds176 pounds
165 pounds182 pounds
170 pounds187 pounds
175 pounds193 pounds
180 pounds198 pounds
185 pounds204 pounds
190 pounds209 pounds
195 pounds215 pounds
200 pounds220 pounds
205 pounds226 pounds
210 pounds231 pounds
215 pounds237 pounds
220 pounds242 pounds
225 pounds248 pounds
230 pounds253 pounds
235 pounds259 pounds
240 pounds264 pounds

How Is Weight on Neptune Determined?

If you want to know what causes your weight to be different on Neptune, you should understand the difference between mass and weight. Your mass is basically a measure of how much matter your body contains. However, your weight is a measure of the attraction between you and the center of the Earth.

The equation that allows you to calculate how much you would weigh on a different planet, created by Sir Isaac Newton, is F=Mm/r2 (M is the planet’s mass, m is your body’s mass, and r is the distance between your body and the planet’s center).

Neptune is 17 times the mass of Earth. It’s even bigger than Uranus, as Uranus is 14.5 times the mass of Earth. However, Neptune is not as massive as Saturn or Jupiter.

Keep in mind that Neptune has a radius of about 15,299 miles, or 24,622 kilometers, which makes it four times wider than Earth.

What Would Other Things Weigh on Neptune?

Every physical object would weigh 110% of what it does now if you were to transport it to Neptune.

If you have a mid-size car, it likely weighs between 3,000 and 3,500 pounds right now. On Neptune, it would weigh between 3,300 and 3,850 pounds. A standard basketball, which is 22 ounces (1 pound, 6 ounces) on Earth, would be slightly heavier, at 24.2 ounces (1 pound, 8.2 ounces) on Neptune. A gallon of milk weighing in at 8.6 ounces on this planet would be 9.5 ounces on Neptune.

If you’re curious about the weight of any object on Neptune, just take its weight and multiply it by a factor of 1.1, and you’ll get your answer!

How Much Does Neptune Weigh?

Neptune has a mass of 1.024 × 10

26

kilograms, or 2.258 × 10

26

pounds – approximately 17 times the mass of Earth.

©iStock.com/3quarks

The mass of Neptune is 1.024 × 1026 kilograms, or 2.258 × 1026 pounds, just over 17 times the mass of our planet.

Neptune is considered to be an ice giant. It doesn’t have a solid surface. It has an atmosphere that is composed primarily of hydrogen, methane, and helium. This atmosphere extends about 20% into the planet’s core and makes up about 5 to 10% of the planet’s mass.

The methane in the atmosphere is what’s thought to give Neptune its blue appearance.

If it was possible to go deeper into the planet, you would see the large mantle. Here, temperatures can go up as high as 8540° Fahrenheit, or 4727° Celsius. Scientists refer to this mixture, rich in water, methane, and ammonia, as an icy mixture, even though it is actually a superheated liquid area.

Like other planets composed of gas and ice, Neptune is thought to have a solid core. This core is thought to be rich with metals and rocky materials, including nickel, iron, and silicates. The core itself is thought to have a mass that is about 1.2 times Earth’s mass.

Could Any Life Survive on Neptune?

Planet neptune

Due to extreme temperatures, winds, and a lack of oxygen in the atmosphere, Neptune could not sustain life as we know it.

©iStock.com/suman bhaumik

Scientists do not believe that any life could be sustained on Neptune. First of all, it’s primarily made up of icy materials, with gases composing the atmosphere.

Additionally, Neptune is extremely cold. Average temperatures on this planet are below -200° Celsius; scientists believe that the minimum temperature necessary to support even the simplest life forms is -20° Celsius.

Neptune also only has trace amounts of oxygen, compared to Earth, which has an atmosphere that is made up of about 20% oxygen.

Neptune is also by far the windiest planet in the solar system. This may not sound so bad until you consider that the speed of the winds can actually be more than 1,200 miles per hour, more than nine times the speed of even some of the strongest winds on Earth.

The highest wind speed ever recorded on Earth was found in a 253-mile-per-hour wind gust during Tropical Cyclone Olivia in 1996. Life, as we know it on Earth, would not be able to survive in conditions as windy and stormy as Neptune’s atmosphere.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © iStock.com/suman bhaumik


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