Jupiter
Mark, Zed, and Vida
Jupiter Facts
Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system - you could fit over 1000 Earths in it, and its mass is greater than the mass of all the other planets combined. Ancient astronomers named Jupiter after the king of the Roman Gods. Jupiter is the fifth closesth planet to our sun and it has sixty-three moons.
Structure
Jupiter reflects twice as much energy as the Sun is gives it. It also has a huge magnetic field. Jupiter is mainly composed of hydrogen and helium (just like a star). It is also made of water, methane and ammonia.
Composition
As a gaseous planet, Jupiter is composed of gases. Specifically, its atmosphere is about 90% hydrogen and 10% helium, with traces (.07%) of methane, water, and ammonia. Jupiter’s core is a molten rock. The core is several times bigger than the entire Earth, and it is 35,500 degrees Celsius.
Size and Density
The size of Jupiter can be measured in four different ways: mass, diameter, volume, and surface area. The mass of jupiter is 1.9 X 10^27. kg The diameter is 143,000 km and the volume is equal to 1.43 X 10^15 km^3. The total surface area is 6.22 X 10^10 km^2. Jupiter's density is 1.33 g/cm^3.
Orbit
It takes about 12 Earth years to make one orbit around the sun, it is an elliptical spin instead of a circular spin like all of the other planets. Jupiter spins too fast to have any seasons it takes up to 10 earth hours to complete a full rotation.
Tectonic Activity and Temperature
There is no tectinic activity in Jupiter because it is a gaseous planet. The temperature is thought to be over 9,700 degrees Celsius; the core of Jupiter could be as hot as 35,500 degrees Celsius.
Suitability for Life
Jupiter itself is not suitable for life; however, some speculate that it moons could sustain organisms. Europa, the sixth moon from Jupiter, has ice and it is likely that is also have liquid water. This has caused speculation that it could sustain microbial life, although no conclusive evidence supports this claim.