Models of how Saturn and Jupiter formed may soon take on a different look. By determining the properties of hydrogen-helium mixtures at the millions of atmospheres of pressure present in the interior of Saturn and Jupiter, physicists have determined the temperature at a given pressure when helium becomes insoluble in dense metallic hydrogen.
Astronomers have discovered a new planet the size of Jupiter. The planet is mostly made of hydrogen and helium, but may contain up to 20 Earth masses of heavier elements including rock and water under high pressure. It thus appears ... Read Post
Lightning storms on planets like Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars may also produce "sprites," bursts of electric energy. Scientists have re-created the atmospheres of these planets to produce artificial "sprites," and the research could le... Read Post
Jupiter may be the largest planet in our solar system, but what if its massive core is actually dissolving? Jupiter's core of iron, rock, and ice is suspended in a sea of hydrogen and helium, under pressure 40 million times greater ... Read Post