Astronomy For Kids - KideSpace : Jupiter

Jupiter


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Introduction:

Jupiter is the 5h planet from sun and most massive and biggest planet in the solar system.

It is more than 11 times that of Earth and about 1/10th that of the sun. Jupiter has been well known from ancient times because of its brightness in the sky. After Venus it is 2nd brightest planet in our solar system. The Greeks associated Jupiter with Zeus, the king of the gods.

It is classified as gas giant along with Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Sometimes together these 4 planets are also referred as Jovian planets. The average distance between Jupiter and the sun is 778 million km, about 5.2 times the average distance from the earth to the sun. It completes full cycle in every 11.86 years around sun.

Do you know/ Interesting facts:

> Jupiter’s volume is equal to 1,317 EARTH's.

> It weighs three hundred times more than Earth, and is more than twice as heavy as all the other planets added together

> Jupiter is the fastest spinning planets in the solar systems.

> Jupiter's Great Red Spot extends more than three times the Earth's diameter.

> Jupiter’s core temperature may be about 43,000 F or 24,000 C, which is hotter than surface of sun.

> The Clouds on Jupiter are only 50 km thick

> Jupiter’s magnetic field is 14 times as strong as Earth

> Jupiter has been visited 7 times by spacecraft from Earth

> We can see Jupiter with our naked eyes

> One of its moons is covered in a sea of natural gas.

> One of its moons is only volcanically active moon in solar system.

> The large red spot on Jupiter is a tropical storm