What They Didn't Teach You in School About Jupiter | Our Solar System's Planets

Summary

Jupiter, the solar system's largest and most massive planet, influences even the Sun with its gravitational pull. Known for its Great Red Spot and colorful cloud bands, Jupiter's composition and storms intrigue scientists. Its strong magnetosphere creates auroras and protects its moons, yet its radiation belts pose a deadly environment. Jupiter's role as a 'cosmic vacuum cleaner' safeguards the inner planets from cometary threats, making it a vital asset to our solar system.

Takeaways

• 🌀 Jupiter, the fifth planet from the Sun, is known for its colossal storms and is a powerhouse with a mass so great it influences the Sun itself.
• 🌐 It has been extensively studied with multiple flybys, orbiters, and planned missions, highlighting its significance in our solar system.
• 🌈 The planet's distinct red coloration and its composition beneath the clouds are subjects of ongoing scientific inquiry.
• 🔒 Jupiter plays a crucial role in protecting our solar system, possibly by drawing in and destroying celestial objects that could pose a threat to inner planets.
• 🌌 Its Great Red Spot, a massive and long-lasting storm, is a notable feature that has been observed for centuries and continues to intrigue scientists.
• 🌟 Despite being made mostly of hydrogen, Jupiter's lack of oxygen and the necessary conditions for nuclear fusion mean it cannot become a star.
• 🌑 Jupiter's rapid rotation, taking only about 10 hours to complete a spin, contributes to its complex and dynamic weather patterns.
• 🌐 The planet's strong gravity, over twice that of Earth, is responsible for its ability to capture numerous moons and affect the orbits of other planets.
• 💫 Jupiter's magnetosphere is the strongest in the solar system, shielding its largest moons from solar wind and creating stunning auroras at the poles.
• 🌑 The planet's rings, though not as prominent as Saturn's, are composed of four distinct planetary rings with unique features.
• 🌑 Jupiter's Galilean moons— Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto— are some of the most studied in the solar system due to their size and diverse characteristics.

Q & A

What is the significance of Jupiter's mass in the solar system?

Jupiter's mass is significant because it is 1/1000th that of the Sun and accounts for almost all the remaining mass in the solar system after the Sun. It is so massive that it influences even the Sun itself, with the barycentre between them being above the Sun's surface.

Why is Jupiter's axial tilt small and what is its effect on the planet?

Jupiter's axial tilt is only 3 degrees, which means it doesn't experience much seasonal change, unlike Earth and Mars. This is similar to Saturn, where the equatorial radius is greater than at the poles.

What is the barycentre and how does Jupiter's gravity affect it?

The barycentre is the centre of mass between two orbiting objects, around which both objects orbit. Jupiter's gravity is strong enough that it influences the Sun, causing both to orbit around a barycentre that is above the Sun's surface.

How does Jupiter's gravity influence the solar system?

Jupiter's gravity is so influential that it affects every planet to some degree, can tear asteroids apart, and has captured at least 67 moons. It may have also prevented other planets from forming and destroyed celestial objects in the past.

What is the Great Red Spot and how long has it been observed?

The Great Red Spot is a massive, long-lasting storm on Jupiter that can easily fit the diameter of Earth within it. It has been observed since the 17th century and may be a permanent feature of the planet, although it has decreased in size over time.

What causes the distinctive red coloration of Jupiter?

The red coloration of Jupiter is caused by chromophores, compounds that heat up from deep within the planet and rise to the cloud layer, where they interact with the UV light of the Sun to create the multi-colored bands.

What is the composition of Jupiter's atmosphere?

Jupiter's atmosphere is composed mainly of hydrogen (about 90%) and helium (about 10%), with trace amounts of methane, ammonia, and other gases.

How fast does Jupiter rotate and what is unique about its rotation?

Jupiter rotates very fast, completing a rotation in only 10 hours. However, due to its non-solid nature, different parts of the planet rotate at slightly different speeds, with the poles taking 5 minutes longer than the equator.

Why isn't Jupiter a star despite its mass and composition?

Jupiter isn't a star because it lacks the necessary conditions for nuclear fusion to occur, which is the process that powers stars. It would need to be about 75 times more massive to potentially ignite as a star.

What are Jupiter's rings like and how many are there?

Jupiter has four planetary rings. The main ring is very thin but bright, while the others are wider but fainter. The main ring is about 6,500 km wide and features a distinctive notch known as the Metis notch.

What is unique about Jupiter's magnetosphere and its effect on its moons?

Jupiter has the strongest magnetosphere of any planet in the solar system, which is 14 times stronger than Earth's. This magnetosphere channels solar wind to the poles, creating auroras, and protects the four largest moons from solar wind, although they are still exposed to Jupiter's powerful radiation belts.

Outlines

00:00

🌌 Jupiter: The Solar System's Colossal Giant

Jupiter, the fifth planet from the Sun, is a massive gas giant known for its powerful storms, intense radiation, and striking beauty. It plays a significant role in our solar system, influencing even the Sun's motion due to its immense mass, which is 1/1000th that of the Sun. Jupiter has been extensively studied with multiple flybys, orbiters, and future missions planned. It orbits the Sun at an average distance of 778 million km, completing an orbit every 12 Earth years. Its small axial tilt results in minimal seasonal changes. Jupiter's gravity is so strong that it affects other celestial bodies, including the orbits of asteroids and comets, and it is theorized to have prevented the formation of additional planets by consuming or disrupting celestial objects in the past.

05:07

🌠 Jupiter's Visibility, Composition, and Storms

Despite being five times farther from the Sun than Earth, Jupiter can be the third brightest object in the night sky, after the Moon and Venus, with a maximum apparent magnitude of -2.94. Its thick cloud layer, composed mainly of ammonia crystals, gives rise to the planet's colorful bands. These bands are created by chromophores, which interact with the Sun's UV light. The Great Red Spot, a massive and long-lasting storm, is a prominent feature on Jupiter, though it has been shrinking over time. Another notable storm, 'Red Spot Jr.', resulted from the merging of three storms and continues to be a significant feature. Jupiter's composition is primarily hydrogen and helium, with a possible ice or rocky core under immense pressure. Its rapid rotation, completing a full turn in just 10 hours, contributes to its complex weather patterns.

10:07

💥 Jupiter's Rings, Magnetosphere, and Moons

Jupiter possesses a faint ring system and a powerful magnetosphere, which is 14 times stronger than Earth's, due to its liquid metallic hydrogen core. This magnetosphere protects the planet's largest moons from solar wind, though they are still exposed to significant radiation. The Galilean moons— Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto— are particularly noteworthy, with Ganymede being the largest moon in the solar system. Jupiter's magnetosphere also channels solar wind to create stunning auroras at the poles. The planet's immense size and gravity have a protective effect on the inner planets of the solar system, potentially drawing in and disrupting dangerous celestial bodies that could otherwise threaten Earth.

Keywords

💡Jupiter

Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system, with a mass greater than all other planets combined. It is a gas giant, primarily composed of hydrogen and helium, and is known for its Great Red Spot, a massive storm that has been raging for centuries. In the video, Jupiter is described as a 'powerhouse' due to its significant influence on the solar system, including its gravitational effects on other planets and its role in protecting the inner planets from potentially harmful celestial objects.

💡Great Red Spot

The Great Red Spot is a persistent high-pressure storm in Jupiter's atmosphere, which is large enough to fit the Earth within its diameter. It is a prominent feature of Jupiter's weather patterns and has been observed for hundreds of years. The video mentions that the Great Red Spot has been decreasing in size over time, and its reddish color is attributed to chemical compounds that interact with the Sun's UV light.

💡Barycentre

The barycentre, or center of mass, is the point around which two bodies in an orbital system revolve. In the context of the video, it is highlighted that the barycentre between Jupiter and the Sun is above the Sun's surface, indicating the significant gravitational influence Jupiter has on the Sun itself. This concept helps explain the mutual gravitational dance between the two celestial bodies.

💡Axial Tilt

Axial tilt refers to the angle between a planet's rotational axis and its orbital axis. The video notes that Jupiter has a small axial tilt of only 3 degrees, which results in minimal seasonal changes, unlike Earth's more pronounced seasons caused by its 23.5-degree tilt.

💡Moons of Jupiter

Jupiter has at least 67 known moons, with the four largest, known as the Galilean moons (Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto), being particularly noteworthy. The video briefly touches on the Galilean moons, mentioning that Ganymede is the largest moon in the solar system and that these moons are protected from solar wind by Jupiter's strong magnetosphere.

💡Magnetosphere

A magnetosphere is a region of space surrounding a celestial body in which the magnetic field dominates the motion of charged particles. Jupiter's magnetosphere is the strongest in the solar system, 14 times stronger than Earth's, due to its liquid metallic hydrogen core. The video explains that this magnetosphere channels solar wind to Jupiter's poles, creating aurorae, and also shields the Galilean moons from the solar wind.

💡Aurorae

Aurorae, or auroras, are natural light displays in the sky, predominantly seen in the high-latitude regions. The video mentions that Jupiter's strong magnetosphere channels solar wind to its poles, where it interacts with the planet's atmosphere, creating magnificent aurorae.

💡Radiation Belts

Radiation belts are zones of energetic charged particles, primarily electrons and protons, that are trapped by a planet's magnetic field. Jupiter's radiation belts are particularly harmful, as the video describes, with the moon Io receiving a lethal dose of radiation each day. This highlights the harsh environment around Jupiter and the challenges faced by spacecraft attempting to explore its vicinity.

💡Galilean Moons

The Galilean moons are the four largest moons of Jupiter, discovered by Galileo Galilei in 1610: Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. The video emphasizes the significance of these moons, noting that Ganymede is the largest moon in the solar system and that each moon has unique characteristics that make them interesting for scientific study.

💡Infrared

Infrared imaging is a technique that captures radiation in the infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which can reveal details not visible in the visible light spectrum. The video concludes with an infrared view of Jupiter, which underscores the planet's immense size and power, and mentions an impact on Jupiter that, if it had occurred on Earth, could have been catastrophic.

Highlights

Jupiter's colossal storms, deadly radiation, and captivating beauty make it a fascinating object of study.

Jupiter's mass is so great that it influences even the Sun itself.

Jupiter has been the subject of numerous flybys, orbiters, and planned missions.

The planet's distinctive red coloration, composition, and cloud layers are subjects of ongoing research.

Jupiter plays a vital role in protecting our solar system by acting as a 'cosmic vacuum cleaner'.

Jupiter's barycentre with the Sun is above the Sun's surface, indicating its significant gravitational influence.

Jupiter's gravity is strong enough to tear asteroids apart and capture 67 moons.

The Great Red Spot is a massive, long-lasting storm on Jupiter with a reddish hue.

Jupiter's composition includes gaseous, liquid, and metallic forms of hydrogen, with an ice or rocky core.

Jupiter's rapid rotation, faster than any other planet, causes a differential rotation effect.

Jupiter's magnetosphere is the strongest of any planet in the solar system.

Jupiter's radiation belts pose a significant challenge to spacecraft and its moons.

The Galilean Moons— Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto— are some of the largest moons in the solar system.

Jupiter's presence in the solar system may have prevented Earth from experiencing catastrophic impacts.

Jupiter's study is crucial for understanding the dynamics and protection mechanisms of our solar system.

Transcripts

Jupiter. A place of colossal storms, deadly  radiation, and captivating beauty. A powerhouse  

whose mass is so great, it influences even the  Sun itself. Jupiter is fast becoming one of the  

most studied objects in our solar system, with 7  flybys, 2 orbiters (with one still in operation  

today), and 2 additional planned missions.  There is so much to know about the 5th planet  

from the Sun. What causes its distinctive  red colouration? What is it made of? What  

lies beneath its obscuring clouds? What do we  know about its Great Red Spot? Jupiter holds a  

vital role in protecting our solar system,  and it’s time to delve into its mysteries. 

Hi, I’m Alex McColgan, and welcome to Astrum.  Join with me today as we explain everything  

you could want to know about Jupiter. The 5th planet from the Sun, Jupiter is  

found on the outskirts of the asteroid belt, and  sits between the orbits of Mars and Saturn. It is  

778 million km away from the Sun on average,  or 5.2 AU, and completes an orbit every 12  

Earth years. The axial tilt of the planet is  small, only 3 degrees. This means it doesn’t  

experience much change in seasons, unlike Earth  and Mars. And very much like Saturn, its radius  

at the equator is greater than at the poles. It is a massive planet. The largest in our solar  

system. It is so massive, its mass is 1/1000th  that of our Sun. That might not seem a lot,  

but once you realise the Sun contains 99.86% of  all the mass in the solar system, you’ll realise  

that Jupiter equals almost the remainder. Its  mass is two and a half times that of all the  

other planets in the solar system combined. And  this brings about an interesting phenomenon;  

the barycentre between Jupiter and the Sun  is actually above the surface of the Sun,  

at 1.068 solar radii from the Sun’s centre. Let’s talk about barycentres. When we think  

of an object orbiting another object, we don’t  necessarily think that the smaller object has a  

gravitational influence on the bigger object.  That’s because most of the time the effect  

is negligible, like the ISS orbiting Earth, or  even Mercury orbiting the Sun. But it does still  

happen. A barycentre is the centre of mass between  these two orbiting objects, or the location  

in space they both orbit around. With Jupiter  being the mass and distance from the Sun it is,  

unlike Mercury, its effect is far from negligible.  As Jupiter swings around the Sun, both of them do  

a little dance around this centre of mass, which  is actually above the surface of the Sun. Let me  

show you this principle with an example. If I get a heavy object and a less heavy  

object and attach them to the ends of a long  stick, in order for the stick to balance,  

we need to find the centre of mass. As you  can see, the centre of mass is closer to  

the heavier object. Imagine this is the Sun  and Jupiter, with the stick being gravity,  

and you’ll understand how a barycentre works. While Jupiter has the greatest mass of any  

planet in the solar system, it’s not the  densest. It is the most massive because  

it is the largest. If Neptune was the same size  as Jupiter, it would be the most massive. And if  

Jupiter was the same size as Earth, Earth would  be over 4 times more massive. As it is though,  

the diameter of Jupiter is 11 times that of Earth,  and its total mass is 318 times more than Earth’s. 

As we know, mass affects gravity. This  means that Jupiter has a huge gravity,  

over twice that of Earth at 2.528 G at  its surface. The gravity of Jupiter is  

so influential in the solar system that it affects  every planet to one degree or another. Its gravity  

is strong enough to tear asteroids apart and  capture 67 moons at least. Some scientists think  

that Jupiter destroyed many celestial objects  in the ancient past as well as preventing other  

planets from forming. One example of this, in  particular, is 4 Vesta. Scientists even predict  

the gravity of Jupiter is so significant around  the solar system that it is perturbing Mercury’s  

already eccentric orbit enough that in a  few billion years the tiny planet may either  

crash into the Sun or be ejected from the solar  system altogether. At the moment though, it could  

be the hero of the inner 4 planets. Without  Jupiter acting as a “cosmic vacuum cleaner”,  

it wouldn’t be sucking up dangerous objects like  long-period comets, or perturbing their orbits  

enough to give them a little kick of energy so  that they leave the solar system altogether. 

Jupiter is the 5th planet from the Sun, and  it’s 5 times further away from the Sun than  

Earth. Even so, it can be the 3rd brightest  object in the night sky, after the Moon and  

Venus. I just want to show you how bright that is.  Just using a handy cam, we can see Jupiter quite  

easily in the night sky. With a maximum apparent  magnitude of -2.94, it can actually cast shadows. 

As a result of it being so obvious in  the sky, it makes a very nice target for  

amateur astronomers. As consumer telescopes  have improved in recent years, it’s amazing  

what details you can see from your back garden. And what makes these famous patterns? The cloud  

layer is only about 50km thick and contains  ammonia crystals much like on Saturn,  

but the colouration comes from compounds  heating up from deep within Jupiter and  

then rising. These compounds are known as  chromophores, and when they reach the clouds,  

they interact with the UV light of the Sun to  create these spectacular multi-coloured bands.  

This is quite the cycle though, and the face of  Jupiter can change dramatically over time. Even  

if their colours do change, the actual latitude of  these bands remains consistent enough to be given  

identifying designations, but they can vary  in width over the course of time. Lots of  

storms and turbulence occur where these  bands meet and it is the reason and engine  

behind Jupiter’s very famous Great Red Spot. This storm is huge. It can easily fit the diameter  

of Earth within it. It has existed for as long as  we’ve known, since it was first discovered in the  

17th century. It might very well be a permanent  feature of the planet, but interestingly it has  

decreased in size since observations began.  The reason for its reddish colour is unknown,  

and the colour of the spot can vary greatly – from  brick red to almost white. The most recent theory  

for its colour is chemical compounds being broken  up by the UV light of the Sun, much in the same  

way as the process that happens on the rest of  the planet. The storm is actually much higher up  

in the atmosphere than the surrounding clouds  and as a result can interact with the sunlight  

a lot more. This would explain why its colour can  be much stronger than anything else around it. 

But Jupiter doesn’t just have one scientifically  interesting storm. Another storm, known as “Red  

Spot Jr.” formed when three storms merged  into one between the years of 1998 and 2000,  

and it has so far passed unscathed by  its bigger neighbour and is now quite  

a prominent feature of the planet. It could last  for another couple of hundred years if it avoids  

the same fate of a similar storm which passed  right through the heart of the great red spot. 

So, what do we think Jupiter is made of?  Well, much like Saturn, under the atmosphere  

are gaseous, then liquid, and then metallic forms  of hydrogen. The further into the planet you go,  

the greater the pressure becomes. Under immense  pressure, hydrogen acts as a metal. And beneath  

that is an ice or a rocky core. Because  we can’t recreate on Earth the immense  

pressures Jupiter experiences, we don’t really  know what properties these materials have at  

the core. Roughly 90% of Jupiter is thought  to be hydrogen, 10% helium, and then trace  

amounts of methane, ammonia, and others. Jupiter rotates very fast, faster than any  

other planet, completing a rotation in only 10  hours. But due to it not being solid, it doesn’t  

rotate the same speed all over; a rotation at the  poles taking 5 minutes longer than at the equator. 

As a child, I was very curious why Jupiter wasn’t  a star. Considering Jupiter is so massive, plus  

it is predominantly made of flammable hydrogen,  surely someone just needs to throw a match in to  

set it alight. Well, the sad news for my inner  child is that stars don’t really work that way,  

plus there’s barely any oxygen on Jupiter to allow  for combustion. Stars produce their heat from  

nuclear fusion caused by the extreme pressures  found at a star’s core. Current thinking is that  

Jupiter would need to be roughly 75 times more  massive than it is now to be massive enough to be  

a star, although interestingly its volume isn’t  too far off from the smallest known red dwarf. 

And yes, you may have noticed in this picture,  Jupiter does indeed have rings. Nothing on the  

scale of Saturn, but there are 4 planetary  rings. The main ring is very thin but very  

bright, the rest quite wide but exceptionally  faint. The main ring is about 6,500 km wide,  

and the only distinctive feature you will  see is what is known as the Metis notch. 

Something else to note about Jupiter is  its remarkably strong magnetosphere. It  

is 14 times stronger than Earth’s due to the  planet’s liquid metallic hydrogen centre. This  

makes it the strongest magnetosphere  of any planet in the solar system,  

and it’s only beaten by the Sun’s sunspots. There are a couple of reasons why this is really  

interesting. The first is that magnetospheres  channel solar wind to the planet’s pole which  

produces magnificent aurorae. The second is  that the four biggest moons of Jupiter are  

protected from this solar wind because they orbit  within the magnetosphere. This implies that they  

don’t need their own strong magnetospheres  because Jupiter is doing that for them. 

However, this doesn’t mean they are safe from  radiation. Jupiter has a powerful radiation  

band around it, the same radiation band that  has crippled any probe that went through it.  

The closest large moon to Jupiter, Io, passes  right through the heart of this radiation band,  

receiving 3600 rem per day on the surface.  For a point of comparison, anyone exposed to  

this much radiation would be dead within four  hours. Not the best home away from home, then. 

When it comes to the Jovian moons, I’ll only  very quickly talk about them, because I have  

made a separate video about them here. Jupiter has  67 known natural satellites. 51 are under 10km in  

diameter, but the largest – the “Galilean Moons” –  are some of the biggest in the solar system. They  

are Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, and they  are all interesting in their own right. Ganymede  

is actually the biggest moon in the solar system  and has a greater diameter than that of Mercury. 

And with this final thought, take a look at  Jupiter through the infrared. Demonstrating  

the immense size and power of this planet, this  dot at the bottom of the planet is the impact of  

an object from space, which if it had hit Earth,  could have spelled the end of our planet as we  

know it. We can be glad Jupiter is there,  not only for its beauty, but because in so  

many ways it is an asset to our solar system. Thank you so much for watching this far. Did  

you learn something today about Jupiter you  never knew before? And what planet remaster  

would you like to see next on this channel  for this series? Let me know in the comments  

below and I’ll see you next time. Thanks for watching. For this video,  

I particularly want to thank George, Brian and Jon  for their incredible support. Making this video  

required some long-time planning and work which we  were only able to do thanks to the consistency and  

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