|
Diameter/km
Mass/kg
mean density kg/m
Volume/km^3
Surface gravity
Escape velocity
Axial rotation period/h
Axial inclination
Distance from Sun
Orbital period/days |
142984
1898e+24
1.33e+3
143128e+10
23.12
59.5km/s
9.84
3.13°
778.41e+6
0.048
4.332.6 |
Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system, it could fit all the planets in our solar system twice over. Jupiter is a gas giant composed predominantly of hydrogen and helium - the main components of the Sun, though it is too small to change into a star. For such a massive planet its rotation is astonishingly fast, faster than all the other planets, taking just 9 and 3 quarters of an hour to spin on its axis. The nearest thing to a permanent feature on Jupiter is its Great Red Spot which is so large it could fit an Earth inside. at a depth of about 10,000km the temperature becomes so high that hydrogen atoms are broken down into a dense, ionized liquid that conducts electricity, powering its extensive magnetic field that has caught many asteroids and currently holds at least 16 moons. The largest are called the Galilean satellites
Humans can forget about colonising Jupiter for a long time, its extreme conditions make it impossible for life to live. However when the Sun expands and burns up the inner planets, Jupiter will change. The enlarged Sun will have a greater gravitational pull which will suck away Jupiter’s hydrogen atmosphere causing the planet to shrink to a dense globe of heavy element. Life based on the element carbon could then be possible on the surface and Jupiter could become another Earth.
| Moon name |
Mass kg |
Radius km |
| Metis |
9.56e16 |
20 |
| Andrastea |
1.91e16 |
10 |
| Amaltea |
7.17e18 |
98 |
| Thebe |
7.77e18 |
50 |
|
| Leda |
5.68e15 |
8 |
| Himalia |
9.56e18 |
93 |
|
| Lysithea |
7.77e16 |
18 |
| Elara |
7.77e17 |
38 |
| Ananke |
3.82e16 |
15 |
| Carme |
9.56e16 |
20 |
| Pasiphae |
1.91e17 |
25 |
| Sinope |
7.77e16 |
18 |
|
| IO |
8.94e22 |
1815 |
| Europa |
4.80e22 |
1569 |
|
| Ganymede |
1.48e23 |
2631 |
| Callisto |
1.08e23 |
2400 |
