天王星是从太阳系由内向外的第七颗行星，其体积在太阳系排名第三（比海王星大），质量排名第四（比海王星轻）。其英文名称Uranus来自古希腊神话的天空之神乌拉诺斯（Οὐρανός），是克洛诺斯的父亲，宙斯的祖父。与在古代就为人们所知的五颗行星（水星、金星、火星、木星、土星）相比，天王星的亮度也是肉眼可见的，但由于较为黯淡以及缓慢的绕行速度而未被古代的观测者认定为一颗行星。直到1781年3月13日，威廉·赫歇耳爵士宣布发现天王星，从而在太阳系的现代史上首度扩展了已知的界限。这也是第一颗使用望远镜发现的行星。

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. It has the third-largest planetary radius and fourth-largest planetary mass in the Solar System. Uranus is similar in composition to Neptune, and both have different bulk chemical composition from that of the larger gas giants Jupiter and Saturn. For this reason, scientists often classify Uranus and Neptune as "ice giants" to distinguish them from the gas giants. Uranus's atmosphere is similar to Jupiter's and Saturn's in its primary composition of hydrogen and helium, but it contains more "ices" such as water, ammonia, and methane, along with traces of other hydrocarbons. It is the coldest planetary atmosphere in the Solar System, with a minimum temperature of 49 K (−224.2 °C), and has a complex, layered cloud structure with water thought to make up the lowest clouds and methane the uppermost layer of clouds. The interior of Uranus is mainly composed of ices and rock.