Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system, and belongs to the group of outer or gas planets. The diameter of the planet is 142,984 km, and it is 11 times larger than the Earth. Jupiter is not as solid as Earth. The planet is a massive gaseous body, formed mainly of hydrogen and helium. It is a large ball of liquid and gas. Jupiter emits more energy than it receives from the Sun. It is assumed that hydrogen fusion processes are carried out in deuterium which would be the source of that energy. Therefore, some astronomers speculate that this planet could be a star. Jupiter did not become that because it did not have the necessary mass for that.
Jupiter turns quickly
The planet has no defined inner surface. The Great Red Spot can be seen and known by telescopic observations. Jupiter orbits the Sun in 11.9 years at an average orbital distance of 778 million kilometers. That’s about 5.2 AU. Planeta rotates faster than any other planet in our solar system. Therefore, a day on Jupite lasts approximately 10 hours. It is extremely fast for the great Jupiter. Unlike Earth, Jupiter’s temperature is almost the same everywhere. This is because the heat does not come from sunlight. Above all, the heat comes from Jupiter. The minimum temperature of the planet is -163 ° C, and the highest is -75.15 ° C.
Months around the planet
Galileo Galilei discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter. These are: Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. Io the moon is agitated by volcanoes, and the other three months are covered with ice. Many of Jupiter’s moons were later discovered. These are: Amalthea, Himalayas, Pasiphae, Sinope, Carme, Lisitea and Ananke. The results of space probes have brought great discoveries. More than 70 natural satellites orbit the planet, and that number is sure to increase.
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