Astronomy Chapter 11 Vocab- "Jupiter"

Jupiter’s Physical Properties

• Mass is twice as much as all other planets put together

• Diameter is 11.2 times greater than Earth’s

• Density is much less than terrestrial planets, so it cannot be rocky or metallic

• Rotation rate is problematic, as Jupiter has no solid surface

differential rotation

when different parts of Jupiter’s atmosphere rotate at different rates

zonal flow

stable flow in Jupiter’s atmosphere that underlies the zones and bands

Great Red Spot

a surface feature on Jupiter that has existed for at least 300 years; produces an anticyclonic storm that is the largest in the Solar System

“Brown Oval”

a large gap in the clouds of Jupiter that is relatively calm compared to the storms on the planet

Shoemaker-Levy 9

a comet that struck Jupiter in fragments in July 1994; provided valuable information about cometary impacts

“plasma torus”

a slightly growing belt of atoms along the orbit of Io

Galilean moons

the term used to describe the four largest moons on Jupiter (Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto) because they were first observed by Galileo

Io

the densest of Jupiter's moons, and the most geologically/volcanically active object in the Solar System

Europa

the moon on Jupiter that has no craters, and its surface is water ice, possibly with liquid water below

Ganymede

the largest moon in the Solar System, which is larger than Pluto and Mercury

Callisto

the moon on Jupiter that is similar to Ganymede and has no evidence of plate activity