Chapter 11: Jupiter

largest; massive

Jupiter is the ______ and most _____ planet in the Solar System.

5th

Jupiter is the ___ planet from the Sun

innermost

Jupiter is the ______ Jovian planet

3rd

Jupiter is the ____ brightest object in the night sky (after the moon and Venus)

1300 kg/m³; far less than terrestrial planets

What is the density of Jupiter, and how does this density compare with the densities of terrestrial planets?

Hydrogen and helium

What is Jupiter primarily made up of?

No; low eccentricity and nearly perpendicular axial, so no dramatic change in distance from Sun

Does Jupiter have seasons? Why or why not?

fastest

Jupiter is the ______ rotating planet in the entire Solar System.

9 hr 50 min

How fast does Jupiter rotate at its equator?

9 hr 55 min

How fast does Jupiter rotate at its poles?

When a planet has a different rate of rotation for different latitudes; it’s matter is not densely pack together, it’s a rotating ball of gas.

Jupiter exhibits differential rotation. What is differential rotation and why does Jupiter exhibit it?

Pushes everything towards from the middle, causing it to bulge out and form an equatorial bulge.

What does Jupiter’s fast rotation do to its overall shape? i.e. is Jupiter spherical?

86.1% hydrogen and 13.8% helium

What is Jupiter’s atmosphere primarily made up of?

gravitational field

The abundance of hydrogen and helium in Jupiter’s atmosphere is a result of Jupiter’s strong gravity or ________.

zones; belts

Jupiter’s atmosphere is made up of bright _____ and dark _____ formed by convection.

Zones

What are the bright regions on Jupiter’s atmosphere called?

Belts

What are the dark regions on Jupiter’s atmosphere called?

upward; moving

Bright zones represent _____, _____ material.

cooler; sinking

Dark belts correspond to _____, _____ material.

White ammonia ice, orange(ish) ammonium hydrosulfide, and white/bluish water ice

Describe Jupiter’s three layers of clouds.

A storm similar to a terrestrial hurricane that’s 2x the size of Earth and rotates counterclockwise once every six days; 300 years old.

What is the Great Red Spot?

No solid surface on Jupiter to dissipate it; storms can form indefinitely.

Why are storms able to last so long on Jupiter?

Twice as much energy

How much energy does Jupiter emit compared to the energy it receives from the Sun?

The slow release of gravitational energy that was stored within the planet during its formation; still leaking today as heat energy.

Jupiter emitting twice as much energy compared to the energy it receives from the Sun implies Jupiter has its own internal energy source. What is it believed to be?

Temperature increases and density increases

What happens to the temperature and density as the depth within Jupiter increases?

metallic

Jupiter’s interior contains a significant amount of _______ hydrogen which serves as the electrically conducting core necessary to generate Jupiter’s strong magnetic field.

aurorae

Jupiter’s strong magnetic field allows for brilliant _______.

20,000

Jupiter’s magnetic field is ______ times stronger than Earth’s.

hydrogen

The liquid metallic _______ that is believed to make up most of Jupiter’s interior should combine with Jupiter’s rapid rotation to create its strong magnetic field.

95

How many moons is Jupiter currently recognized to have?

Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto

List the Galilean moons, which are four largest moons of Jupiter, in order of closest to farthest.

the same side always faces Jupiter

The Galilean moons are in synchronous orbit, meaning

decrease

The Galilean moons’ densities ________ with increasing distance from Jupiter.

Ganymede

Which of the Galilean moons is the largest?

Europa

Which of the Galilean moons is the smallest?

Callisto

Which of the Galilean moons does not have a differentiated interior?

80

Io is the most geologically active object in the entire Solar System; it contains more than _____ active volcanoes that constantly repave its surface, resulting in the youngest surface.

sulfur compounds

The orange color of Io likely comes from ________ from volcanic eruptions.

Io plasma torus

Volcanic activity on Io strongly influences Jupiter’s magnetosphere and contributes charged particles that form the ___________ around Jupiter.

Donut-shaped region of energetic heavy ions that follows Io’s orbital path completely encompassing Jupiter.

What is the Io plasma torus?

gravity

The source of Io’s activity is essentially _______.

tidal heating

Combined tugs from Jupiter and other moons like Europa and Ganymede allow for _______ to occur with Io, causing much volcanic activity.

craters

Europa has few ______ on its surface, which is very young.

ocean

Europa is likely covered with an _____ that is completely frozen on top.

tidal pulls

The cracks on Europa’s surface are likely the result of ________ from Jupiter and other moons.

electrically conducting liquid

Europa has a weak magnetic field that is constantly changing in strength and direction that is likely generated by Jupiter’s magnetic field acting on a shell of ___________ within Europa.

salt water ocean

Europa is believed to have a liquid _________ beneath its surface.

water

The likelihood that Europa has ______ motivates us to look for life there.

fraternal twins

Ganymede and Callisto are nicknamed the ________.

largest

Ganymede is the ______ moon in the Solar System.

heavily

Ganymede’s surface is _______ cratered.

plate tectonic

Ganymede probably had _________ activity that ceased 3 billion years ago.

It’s generated by a layer of slushy water ice below its surface.

Ganymede has a weak magnetic field that is partly caused by what?

craters; fault lines

Callisto has more ______ and fewer ______ than Ganymede.

Valhalla

The most obvious feature on Callisto’s surface is a large series of concentric ridges surrounding each of the two large basins on its surface. The larger of the two basins, called ______, was probably caused by an impact.

No, it’s just frigid ice

Is there geological activity on the surface of Callisto today?

No evidence

Are plate tectonics believed to ever have existed on Callisto?

differentiated

Callisto is not _______, so it probably never melted and may be entirely solid.

ring

A thin _____ was discovered around Jupiter by the 1979 Voyager mission.

equatorial plane

Jupiter’s ring lies 50,000 kilometers above Jupiter inside its innermost moon and within Jupiter’s __________.

Fragments chipped off of the moons Metis and Adrastea after meteoric impacts occur.

What might Jupiter’s ring have formed from?

Most active object in solar system, active volcanoes, constantly repaved surface, youngest surface, orange, sulfur, influences Jupiter’s magnetosphere, activity due to gravity, combined tugs from Jupiter and other moons allow for tidal heating

Characteristics of Io

Smallest, young, few moons, covered is frozen ocean, cracks on surface from tidal pulls. weak magnetic field, shell of electrically conducting liquid, liquid salt water ocean beneath its surface, possible life because of water.

Characteristics of Europa

Largest moon in solar system, heavily cratered, plate tectonics ceased 3 billion years ago, weak magnetic field from layer of slushy ice water below surface.

Characteristics of Ganymede

More craters and less fault lines than Ganymede, large series of concentric ridges around two basins caused by impact, no activity, frigid ice, no plate tectonics, not differentiated, solid.

Characteristics of Callisto