Jupiter
Jupiter
Planet · 5.20 AU from the Sun
Jupiter facts
- Type
- Planet
- Distance from the Sun
- 5.20 AU (7.78 × 10⁸ km)
- Orbital period (year)
- 11.9 Earth years
- Diameter
- 139,822 km
- Mass
- 1.9 × 10²⁷ kg
- Moons
- 115
- Rotation period (day)
- 9.9 hours
- Axial tilt
- 3.13°
- Mean temperature
- -110 °C
- Discovered
- Known to the ancients
Orbit
About Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet and by far the largest, a gas giant more massive than all the other planets combined. Its swirling cloud bands and the centuries-old Great Red Spot storm are driven by ferocious winds, and it commands a large family of moons.
- Named after the king of the Roman gods
- Discovered: Known to the ancients
Major moons of Jupiter
Jupiter has 115 known moons; its 4 largest are shown below. Press play to start the animation.
Relative sizes and spacing are compressed; orbits shown coplanar. Click a moon for its page.
Paused
- Ganymede the largest moon in the Solar System, bigger than the planet Mercury, and the only moon with its own magnetic field
- Callisto the most heavily cratered body in the Solar System, its surface essentially unchanged for billions of years
- Io the most volcanically active body in the Solar System, with hundreds of erupting volcanoes
- Europa hides a global subsurface ocean of liquid water beneath its icy crust, a prime target in the search for life
Jupiter: frequently asked questions
- What is Jupiter?
- Jupiter is a planet in our Solar System, orbiting the Sun at an average distance of 5.20 AU (7.78 × 10⁸ km). Jupiter is the fifth planet and by far the largest, a gas giant more massive than all the other planets combined.
- How far is Jupiter from the Sun?
- Jupiter orbits the Sun at an average distance of 5.20 AU, about 7.78 × 10⁸ km. One AU is the Earth-Sun distance, so Jupiter is roughly 5.2 times Earth's distance from the Sun.
- How long is a year on Jupiter?
- Jupiter takes 11.9 Earth years to complete one orbit of the Sun. By Kepler's third law, bodies farther from the Sun take longer to go around.
- How many moons does Jupiter have?
- Jupiter has 115 known moons; the 4 largest are Ganymede, Callisto, Io, Europa.
- How big is Jupiter?
- Jupiter has a diameter of about 139,822 km and a mass of roughly 1.9 × 10²⁷ kg.
See Jupiter in motion
Data from NASA/JPL and NSSDCA. Source.