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Gas Giants
Jupiter and Saturn
Jupiter
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The Romans named the planet after
the Roman god Jupiter. When viewed
from Earth, Jupiter can reach an
apparent magnitude of −2.8, making it
the third brightest object in the night
sky after the Moon and Venus
The planet Jupiter is primarily
composed of hydrogen with a small
proportion of helium; it may also have
a rocky core of heavier elements
under high pressure. Because of its
rapid rotation, Jupiter's shape is that of
an oblate spheroid (it possesses a
slight but noticeable bulge around the
equator). The outer atmosphere is
visibly segregated into several bands
at different latitudes, resulting in
turbulence and storms along their
interacting boundaries. A prominent
result is the Great Red Spot, a giant
storm that is known to have existed
since at least the 17th century.
Surrounding the planet is a faint
planetary ring system and a powerful
magnetosphere. There are also at
least 63 moons.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVL57k
GBR04
89.8%
10.2%
0.3%
0.026%
0.003%
0.0006%
0.0004%
Hydrogen (H2)
Helium
Methane
Ammonia
Hydrogen deuteride (HD)
Ethane
water
Galilean moons
The Galilean moons are the four moons of Jupiter
discovered by Galileo Galilei. They are the largest of
the many moons of Jupiter and derive their names
from the lovers of Zeus .
The Galilean moons are :Io, Europa, Ganymede and
Callisto.
The four moons were discovered sometime
between 1609 and 1610 when Galileo made
improvements to his telescope.
Saturn
• Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun
and the second largest planet in the Solar
System, after Jupiter. Saturn, along with
Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune, is classified
as a gas giant. Together, these four
planets Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus and
Neptune are sometimes referred to as the
Jovian planets, where Jovian is the
adjectival form of Jupiter.
Saturn
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The planet Saturn is composed of
hydrogen, with small proportions
of helium and trace elements. The
interior consists of a small core of
rock and ice, surrounded by a
thick layer of metallic hydrogen
and a gaseous outer layer. The
outer atmosphere is generally
bland in appearance, although
long-lived features can appear.
Wind speeds on Saturn can reach
1800 km/h (practically it will rip
you apart), significantly faster than
those on Jupiter. Saturn has a
planetary magnetic field
intermediate in strength between
that of Earth and the more
powerful field around Jupiter.
The average distance between Saturn and the Sun
is over 1 400 000 000 km .
The visible features on Saturn rotate at different
rates depending on latitude, and multiple rotation
periods have been assigned to various regions .
Saturn has 62 moons.
The rings were first observed by Galileo Galilei in 1610 with his telescope, but
he was unable to identify them as such. He wrote to the Duke of Tuscany that
"The planet Saturn is not alone, but is composed of three, which almost touch
one another and never move nor change with respect to one another.
Moons
Saturn has 60 moons with confirmed orbits, 52 of which have names, and most of which
are quite small. With seven moons that are large enough to be ellipsoidal in shape
Twenty-two of Saturn's moons are regular satellites,
Their orbits at close to saturn.
The remaining thirty-eight, all small, are irregular satellites,
whose orbits are much farther from Saturn, have high
inclinations.
Titan is the largest satellite In our Solar System.
Saturn is only 95 Earth masses, compared to
Jupiter, which is 318 times the mass of the
Earth but only about 20% larger than Saturn.
1. Which planets are the Gas giants?
2. How long has the red giant been on Jupiter?
3. How many moons does Jupiter have?
4. When were the Galilean Moons Discovered? And by who?
5. Name the Four Galilean Moons.
6. How fast Can the winds on Saturn reach.
7. What is the average distance from the Sun to Saturn?
8. How many moons does Saturn have?
9. What is the largest satellite In our Solar System.
10. How many of Saturn's moons have Names?