Jupiter and the Jovian Planets

1. Jupiter and the Jovian Planets Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune

2. Jovian Planets vs. Terrestrial Planets

3. Jovian Planet Composition • Jupiter and Saturn • Mostly H and He gas • Uranus and Neptune • Mostly hydrogen compounds: water (H2O), methane (CH4), ammonia (NH3) • Some H, He, and rock

4. Key Concepts: Jupiter • Jupiter is the most massive planet in the solar system • Mass of Jupiter = 318 Earth masses • Radius of orbit around the Sun = 5 AU • orbital period = 12 years • rotational period = 10 hours • 95% of Jupiter is hydrogen and helium • Because it is so massive, Jupiter has been able to retain its hydrogen and helium, unlike the Earth • Jupiter radiates about twice as much energy as it gets from the Sun • It’s still cooling off from its formation

5. Sizes of Jovian Planets • Adding mass to a jovian planet compresses the underlying gas layers.

6. Sizes of Jovian Planets • Greater compression is why Jupiter is not much larger than Saturn even though it is three times more massive. • Jovian planets with even more mass can be smaller than Jupiter.

7. Rotation and Shape • Jovian planets are not quite spherical because of their rapid rotation.

8. Jupiter’s fast rotation  squished • The speed of rotation at Jupiter’s equator is 27 times the speed of rotation at Earth’s equator • Consequently, Jupiter is squished • the equatorial diameter of Jupiter is 6.5% bigger than its polar diameter • c.f. for the Earth, the equatorial diameter is 0.3% bigger than the polar diameter

10. What are jovian planets like on the inside?

11. Interiors of Jovian Planets • No solid surface • Layers under high pressure and temperatures • Cores (~10 Earth masses) made of hydrogen compounds, metals, and rock • The layers are different for the different planets. WHY?

12. Inside Jupiter • High pressures inside Jupiter cause phase of hydrogen to change with depth. • Hydrogen acts like a metal at great depths because its electrons move freely.

13. Inside Jupiter • Core is thought to be made of rock, metals, and hydrogen compounds. • Core is about same size as Earth but 10 times as massive.

14. Comparing Jovian Interiors • Models suggest cores of jovian planets have similar composition. • Lower pressures inside Uranus and Neptune mean no metallic hydrogen.

15. Jupiter’s Internal Heat • Jupiter radiates twice as much energy as it receives from the Sun. • Energy probably comes from slow contraction of interior (releasing potential energy).

16. Internal Heat of Other Planets • Saturn also radiates twice as much energy as it receives from the Sun. • Energy probably comes from differentiation (helium rain). • Neptune emits nearly twice as much energy as it receives, but the source of that energy remains mysterious.

17. Storms on Jupiter Red and white bands Great Red Spot Small black spot is a moon

18. Jupiter’s bands • Clouds on Jupiter show • Zones (lighter in color) = high-pressure, high-temperature regions • Belts (dark in color) are low pressure, lower temperature regions • White clouds are frozen ammonia – NH3 • Winds can exceed 400 mph • Ammonium sulfide clouds (NH4SH) reflect red/brown. • Ammonia, the highest, coldest layer, reflects white.

19. Coriolis Effect • Objects swerve on any rotating object • Why hurricanes on Earth swirl

20. Jupiter’s Great Red Spot

21. Jupiter’s Great Red Spot • Is a storm twice as wide as Earth • Has existed for at leastfour centuries (Galileo saw it in 1600s)

22. Voyager picture of spot:turbulent flow near the spot

23. Laminar vs. Turbulent Fluid Flow Air becomes turbulent when it encounters a barrier, or when two fluids move past each Other with different speeds

24. Turbulent Flow Laminar flow

25. Saturn’s Colors • Saturn’s layers are similar, but deeper in and farther from the Sun (more subdued).

26. Methane on Uranus and Neptune • Methane gas of Neptune and Uranus absorbs red light but transmits blue light. • Blue light reflects off methane clouds, making those planes look blue.

27. Jupiter’s Magnetosphere • Jupiter’s strong magnetic field gives it an enormous magnetosphere • Jupiter has very prominent aurorae

28. Jupiter’s aurorae

29. Other Magnetospheres • All jovian planets have substantial magnetospheres, but Jupiter’s is the largest by far. • Generated by metallic hydrogen core

30. Jupiter’s Ring • Jupiter has a very faint ring • Discovered by Voyager I in 1979 • The ring is 7000 miles wide Photo from Galileo Spacecraft, 1996

31. Artist’s impression of Jupiter’s ring

32. What have we learned? • Are jovian planets all alike? • Jupiter and Saturn are mostly H and He gas. • Uranus and Neptune are mostly H compounds. • What are jovian planets like on the inside? • Layered interiors with very high pressure and cores made of rock, metals, and hydrogen compounds • Very high pressure in Jupiter and Saturn can produce metallic hydrogen.

33. What have we learned? • What is the weather like on jovian planets? • Multiple cloud layers determine colors of jovian planets. • All have strong storms and winds. • Do jovian planets have magnetospheres like Earth’s? • All have substantial magnetospheres. • Jupiter’s is the largest by far.