Jupiter

“Every 12 years Jupiter returns to the same position in the sky; every 370 days it disappears in the fire of the Sun in the evening to the west, 30 days later it reappears in the morning to the east...[Observation in 4th century B.C.]”

- Gan De

General Information:

• Jupiter is the largest planet of our solar system and the oldest, as it was formed first. After the other planets formed, it became the 5th planet from the sun. As a result of its distance from the sun, it is the farthest planet from the sun that can be seen from Earth.

• Jupiter was first discovered by Galileo Galilei through his telescope. He also discovered several of Jupiter’s moons.

• Compared to Earth, Jupiter is 318 times its mass and has the largest diameter at 88.846 miles at the equator.

• Jupiter does not have seasons because it only has a slight axial tilt of 3.13 degrees.

• Jupiter is composed of hydrogen (90%) and helium (10%) as well as liquids. It has the largest atmosphere of all the planets, which is made of ammonia, sulfur, water vapor, methane, and other compounds.

• Jupiter has 79 moons, including Europa (known for having conditions possibly suitable for life), Callisto (known for perhaps having an ocean), Ganymede (known for being the largest moon of all planets), and Lo (known for having volcanic activity).

• Jupiter has a very bright glow that is produced from the planet’s magnetic field and plasma particles.

• Jupiter has a large gaseous area known as the Red Spot. There are constant storms there caused by Jupiter’s atmosphere.

Discoveries

• Galileo Galilei made the discovery of Jupiter itself with his telescope.

• Voyager 1 and 2 discovered Jupiter’s rings and more of its moons.

• The Galileo Spacecraft entered Jupiter’s atmosphere and discovered more about its composition.

• Cassini was the first to take an overall picture of the planet

• Juno discovers more about Jupiter’s composition and its atmosphere, learning about its origin and formation

• New Horizons spacecraft sent by NASA to take some of the first pictures of the planet.

Fun Facts

• Although Jupiter is similar to a star, it can never become one.

• It is the fastest spinning planet in the Milky Way Galaxy.

• Although it was first recorded with scientific proof by Galileo, the ancient Babylonians are theorized to first have seen Jupiter.

• Jupiter is named after the Greek God Zeus and was worshipped by the Romans.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtkqwslbLY8