Jupiter and its Moons essays

Jupiter and its Moons essays Jupiter, the largest of the Jovian planets, reigns supreme throughout the solar system. Named after the Roman god Jove, the ruler of Olympus; "Jupiter is the fifth planet from the sun and is also the largest planet in the Earth's solar system. It is 318 times moremassive than Earth and is two thirds of the planetary mass in the solar system. Jupiter's surface, unlike earth, is gaseous and not a solid. It is about 90% hydrogen and 10% helium with traces of methane, ammonia, water and rock. Jupiter's interior is very similar to the Sun's interior but with a far lower temperature."(Columbia) However, it is still unknown for certain, but Jupiter is believed to have a core of liquid metallic hydrogen. This exotic element can only be achieved at a pressure greater than 4 million bars. Jupiter radiates more energy in space than it receives from the sun. "Jupiter's orbit lies beyond the asteroid belt at a mean distance of c.483 million mi (773 million km) from the sun; its period of revolution is 11.86 years." (Seeds) In order from the sun it is the first of the Jovian planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune), very large, massive planets of relatively low density, having rapid rotation and a thick, opaque atmosphere. "Jupiter has a diameter of 88,679 mi (142,800 km), more than 11 times that of the earth. Its mass is 318 times that of the earth and about 2 1/2 times the mass of allother planets combined." (Columbia) A measurement of the diameter of Jupiter determined the planet's polar flattening. The flattening of Jupiter was revealed by Pioneer to be slightly greater than that derived from the best Earth-based measurements. "The diameter of the planet was measured at a pressure of 800 mbar near the cloud tops (a bar is roughly equal to the pressure of 1 atm of Earth). Its polar diameter is 133,540 km (82,980 miles) and its equatorial diameter is142, 796 kilometers (88,73...