Jupiter
Jupiter is often referred to as “Gas Giant” due to it being the largest planet in the solar system as well as its composition of primarily hydrogen and carbon. The planet has an average temperature of -145 degrees Celsius. Its full name of Jupiter comes from the king of the Roman gods. Galileo Galilei discovered Jupiter along with its four largest moons on January 4th 1609. The planet’s iconic red, white, brown, and yellow stripes are due to regional changes. The white and yellow stripes, known as zones, are due to Jupiter’s atmospheric gasses rising upwards, whereas the red and brown stripes, bands, are caused by changes in temperature and chemical composition and the colors are separated by opposing winds. Jupiter’s well known Giant …show more content…
Three missions have briefly passed the gigantic mystery while only one had focussed primarily on Jupiter, orbiting and probing the planet. Pioneer 11 was the first to fly by on September 1st 1979, followed by Voyager 1 on November 13th 1980. The third fly by was Voyager 2 on August 26st 1981. Pioneer 11 returned with photographs of Jupiter and its Giant Red Spot. When Voyager 1 returned from its mission, it returned with valuable information on Jupiter’s moons. Voyager 2’s photograph’s revealed the the Giant Red Spot is truly a storm and one of Jupiter’s most significant moons, Io's volcanic activity. Galileo was the fourth and most thorough mission. Galileo orbited and probed Jupiter for about a year. The mission arrived at the planet on February 10th 1990 and entered the atmosphere on December 7th 1995. This mission turned back the most information above it the planet …show more content…
The four largest and best known moons are grouped known as the Galileo Satellites but individually as Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, first seen in 1610 by Galileo Galilei. Each moon is very different. Io has the most volcanic activity of any surface in the solar system. Its surface is covered in sulfur. Io orbits Jupiter in an elliptical orbit and Jupiter’s gravity creates high waves on the moon. Europa’s surface as primarily water ice and is potentially inhabitable. Ganymede is the largest moon in the solar system; so large that it is the only moon to have it own magnetic field. Callisto’s surface is covered in craters. Each of the four moons has a unique inner layer structure. Three fourths of the moons have an influence on each other that NASA describes as “Io is in a tug-of-war with Ganymede and Europa.” Ganymede has twice the orbit period as Europa. Europa takes twice as long to orbit Jupiter as
Jupiter is often referred to as “Gas Giant” due to it being the largest planet in the solar system as well as its composition of primarily hydrogen and carbon. The planet has an average temperature of -145 degrees Celsius. Its full name of Jupiter comes from the king of the Roman gods. Galileo Galilei discovered Jupiter along with its four largest moons on January 4th 1609. The planet’s iconic red, white, brown, and yellow stripes are due to regional changes. The white and yellow stripes, known as zones, are due to Jupiter’s atmospheric gasses rising upwards, whereas the red and brown stripes, bands, are caused by changes in temperature and chemical composition and the colors are separated by opposing winds. Jupiter’s well known Giant …show more content…
Three missions have briefly passed the gigantic mystery while only one had focussed primarily on Jupiter, orbiting and probing the planet. Pioneer 11 was the first to fly by on September 1st 1979, followed by Voyager 1 on November 13th 1980. The third fly by was Voyager 2 on August 26st 1981. Pioneer 11 returned with photographs of Jupiter and its Giant Red Spot. When Voyager 1 returned from its mission, it returned with valuable information on Jupiter’s moons. Voyager 2’s photograph’s revealed the the Giant Red Spot is truly a storm and one of Jupiter’s most significant moons, Io's volcanic activity. Galileo was the fourth and most thorough mission. Galileo orbited and probed Jupiter for about a year. The mission arrived at the planet on February 10th 1990 and entered the atmosphere on December 7th 1995. This mission turned back the most information above it the planet …show more content…
The four largest and best known moons are grouped known as the Galileo Satellites but individually as Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, first seen in 1610 by Galileo Galilei. Each moon is very different. Io has the most volcanic activity of any surface in the solar system. Its surface is covered in sulfur. Io orbits Jupiter in an elliptical orbit and Jupiter’s gravity creates high waves on the moon. Europa’s surface as primarily water ice and is potentially inhabitable. Ganymede is the largest moon in the solar system; so large that it is the only moon to have it own magnetic field. Callisto’s surface is covered in craters. Each of the four moons has a unique inner layer structure. Three fourths of the moons have an influence on each other that NASA describes as “Io is in a tug-of-war with Ganymede and Europa.” Ganymede has twice the orbit period as Europa. Europa takes twice as long to orbit Jupiter as