The Joy of Jupiter
Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system, and is second in mass only to the Sun itself. You can get a good look at it with a backyard telescope. This bad boy is huge, but has a rotation rate of only ten hours. Also, it is graced with the most known moons (that we know of) at sixty seven, and Ganymede is the largest moon in the solar system. But it is mostly gas, so do not expect to land on it and meet residents that look like green and purple birds with orange beaks. The Great Red Spot is thought to be a storm. A big storm, the size of Earth, twice over.
But Jupiter also confounds evolutionary scientists. It is hot, and has a powerful magnetic field. And all those moons? They do not orbit in the same direction, many are in retrograde — which confounds planetary formation speculations and supports biblical creation models for a young system. Wait, there's more!
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| A high-resolution image of Jupiter taken by NASA's Cassini spacecraft. Credit: NASA / JPL (usage does not imply endorsement of site contents) |
But Jupiter also confounds evolutionary scientists. It is hot, and has a powerful magnetic field. And all those moons? They do not orbit in the same direction, many are in retrograde — which confounds planetary formation speculations and supports biblical creation models for a young system. Wait, there's more!
The planet Jupiter is a wonderful example of the creativity of the Lord. It is remarkably different from the worlds we have examined previously in this Impact series. Jupiter does not possess a solid surface but is an enormous spheroid of gas—eleven times the diameter of Earth—held together by its own gravity. The gas pressure increases with depth, eventually becoming liquid.
Properties of Jupiter
The fifth planet away from the sun, Jupiter is composed primarily of hydrogen and helium, the same gases that comprise the sun. However, the much cooler temperature of Jupiter allows the formation of molecules such as ammonia, water, and methane from various trace elements. These molecular compounds create Jupiter’s colorful cloud formations.
Jupiter is massive—the equivalent of 318 Earths! If we could put it on a scale, it would weigh more than twice as much as all the other planets combined. Jupiter is so massive that its gravity slightly, but noticeably, affects the motions of the other planets. Astronomers must factor this into their computations when predicting the precise positions of planets. Due to its large size, the disk of Jupiter is easily visible with virtually any small telescope, or even through good binoculars, despite being 500 million miles away from Earth.To finish the article, you can jump over to "The Solar System — Jupiter".