Jupiter

[kess]

I know this sounds like a silly question, but is Jupiter a solid planet or gas. No one has seen the surface, so I was just wondering.

 

[deapfreeze]

This is what wikipedia says about Jupiter.<br /><br />A gas giant (sometimes also known as a Jovian planet after the planet Jupiter) is a large planet that is not primarily composed of rock or other solid matter. There are four gas giants in our Solar System; Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Uranus and Neptune may be considered a separate subclass of giant planets, 'ice giants', or 'Uranian planets', as they are mostly composed of ice, rock as well as gases of water, ammonia and methane, unlike the "traditional" gas giants Jupiter or Saturn. However, they share the same qualities of the lack of the solid surface; their differences stem from the fact that their proportion of hydrogen and helium is lower, due to their greater distance from the Sun.<br /><br />Gas giants may have a rocky or metallic core—in fact, such a core is thought to be required for a gas giant to form—but the majority of its mass is in the form of the gaseous hydrogen and helium, with traces of water, methane, ammonia, and other hydrogen compounds. (Although familiar to us as gases on Earth, these constituents are expected to be compressed into liquids or solids deep in a gas giant's atmosphere.)<br /><br />to read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gas_giant<br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font size="2" color="#0000ff"><em>William ( deapfreeze ) Hooper</em></font></p><p><font size="1">http://deapfreeze-amateur-astronomy.tk/</font></p><p> </p> </div>

 

[alokmohan]

New horizon gives new pictures.

 

[nexium]

At standard pressure and minus 263 degrees c, hydrogen ice has half the density of water. Jupiter has lower density than Earth, inspite of the enourmous pressure near the center. Large quantities of rock or metal would make Jupiter much more massive, unless the center temperature of Jupiter is about one million degrees c. The "warm" cloud tops of Jupiter indicates a hot interior, perhaps 25,000 degrees c. Can anyone suggest a model for Jupiter that does not require mostly hydrogen nearly to the center?<br />How about a rigid sphere of unobtainium a thousand kilometers below the cloud tops, with vacuum inside the sphere? Neil

 

[3488]

Hi there.<br /><br />Try these links. Jupiter interior model & Jupiter interior description.<br /><br />Hi alokmohan.<br /><br />Yes indeed. Fantastic images too. Although New Horizons is Pluto bound, the Jupiter swingby has been a superb success.<br /><br />Andrew Brown.<br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080">"I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before".</font> <em><strong><font color="#000000">Linda Morabito </font></strong><font color="#800000">on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.</font></em></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://www.launchphotography.com/</font><br /><br /><font size="1" color="#000080">http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearth</font></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://web.me.com/meridianijournal</font></p> </div>

 

[sponge]

How about a rigid sphere of unobtainium a thousand kilometers below the cloud tops, with vacuum inside the sphere? <br /><br />Haha I wouldnt mind a few chunks of unobtainium <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em><u>SPONGE</u></em></p> </div>

 

[brellis]

<font color="yellow">How about a rigid sphere of unobtainium a thousand kilometers below the cloud tops, with vacuum inside the sphere? <br /><br />Haha I wouldnt mind a few chunks of unobtainium</font><br /><br />Who's going to defend Jupiter against this barrage of planetary ad homs - er, ad planetariums? <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font size="2" color="#ff0000"><em><strong>I'm a recovering optimist - things could be better.</strong></em></font> </p> </div>

 

[dragon04]

Jupiter is largely a gas planet. When the Galileo atmospheric probe quit returning data, it was some 90 miles into Jupiter's atmosphere and experiencing pressures of 23 atmospheres.<br /><br />Considering Jupiter's diameter, and the overall volume (and known mass of the planet) of atmosphere it had already penetrated, I think it's fair to say that Jupiter's composition is far more gaseous than solid.<br /><br />Is there a solid component at its core? It seems likely. But relative to its entire mass, I can't see it being considered anything other than gaseous in regards to the majority of its makeup. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <em>"2012.. Year of the Dragon!! Get on the Dragon Wagon!".</em> </div>