Jovian Planets Test

Commonalties of all jovian planets

• all have moons and rings

• none have a solid surface

Main element in the atmosphere of Neptune and Uranus

Methane; makes them blue

Clouds of Jupiter

• bands are light colored

• belts are dark colored

• red spot is a storm (like a hurricane)

• bright colors in the clouds are made of organic compounds (sulfur, phosphorus)

• the clouds move in different directions in different speeds

What creates a magnetic field in a planet?

• fast rotation

• convection; Jupiter generates more heat in the core than it gets from the Sun

What is the product of a strong magnetic field?

An aurora

What is the Great Red Spot and where is it located?

• a storm on Jupiter

• 300 years old

What are the cores of jovian planets made of?

rock and iron

Uranus’s seasons and tilt

• each season lasts 40 years, 2 seasons

• spin axis is tipped so it nearly lies on its orbital plane

• almost a 90 degree tilt, tipped on its side, possibly hit by something

Jupiter density

1.3 g/cm³

Saturn density

0.7 g/cm³

Earth density

5.5 g/cm³

Order of density (Jupiter, Saturn, and Earth) from smallest to largest

• Saturn, Jupiter, Earth

• Jupiter and Saturn are low in density because they are primarily hydrogen

Properties of Saturn’s rings

• wide but thin

• made from ice and dust

Why do the gas giants look different

Saturn has frozen ammonia which makes it different from Jupiter

Galilean moons (four innermost moons)

• Europa: has more water than Earth

• Io: has volcanoes

• Ganymede: largest moon, has its own magnetic field

• Callisto

How was Neptune discovered?

• math

• looking for it because of disturbances in Uranus’ orbit

Main gases on each gas planet

• Saturn and Jupiter: hydrogen, helium, and hydrogen compounds

• Neptune and Uranus: hydrogen, helium, and methane

Which planet is larget?

Jupiter; most mass of all the planets combines

Planets in order of largest to smallest in size

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

Titan

• Saturn’s moon

• ice dunes

• liquid ocean of methane

• atmosphere of nitrogen

The core of Jupiter is similar to

Earth