Jupiter Planet Facts: Jupiter Planet Information
Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system, which is situated between the planets of Mars and Saturn. Its diameter is 88,846 miles (142,984 kilometers), more than 11 times that of Earth, and about one-tenth that of the sun. After the Venus, Jupiter is the second brightest planet. The wonderful planet contains swirling clouds of gases in a banded structure. It is visited by 8 spacecraft, Pioneer 10, Pioneer 11, Voyager 1 and 2, Galileo, Ulysses, Cassini and New Horizons. Learn about Jupiter facts and information here.
- Jupiter is big! Its diameter is 88,846 miles across. It is big enough to fit 1000 Earths inside it.
- Jupiter is radiating 1.9 times the heat it receives from the Sun. This means it is generating its own heat. This is caused by the continual contraction of Jupiter that has been going on since its formation, as well as diffusive separation of gases, radionuclide and other sources.
- Jupiter is 5 times farther from the Sun than Earth is. The Earth is one “astronomical unit” from the Sun, that is, about 93,000,000 miles. Jupiter is, therefore, 5 astronomical units from the Sun, specifically; it is 483,700,000 miles from the Sun. The Sun would look much smaller at Jupiter than it does to us here on Earth.