Instruct: Given a question, retrieve documents that can help answer the question.
Query: Does Jupiter have an atmosphere?
The atmosphere of Jupiter is the largest planetary atmosphere in the Solar System. It is mostly made of molecular hydrogen and helium in roughly solar proportions; other chemical compounds are present only in small amounts and include methane, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and water. Although water is thought to reside deep in the atmosphere, its directly measured concentration is very low. The nitrogen, sulfur, and noble gas abundances in Jupiter's atmosphere exceed solar values by a factor of about three.[2]
The Galileo atmospheric probe, as it plunged into Jupiter, measured the wind, temperature, composition, clouds, and radiation levels down to 22bar. However, below 1bar elsewhere on Jupiter there is uncertainty in the quantities.[23]
During the science mission, infrared and microwave instruments will measure the thermal radiation emanating from deep within Jupiter's atmosphere. These observations will complement previous studies of its composition by assessing the abundance and distribution of water, and therefore oxygen. This data will provide insight into Jupiter's origins. "Juno" will also investigate the convection that drives natural circulation patterns in Jupiter's atmosphere. Other instruments aboard "Juno" will gather data about its gravitational field and polar magnetosphere. The "Juno" mission was planned to conclude in February 2018, after completing 37 orbits of Jupiter. The probe was then intended to be de-orbited and burn up in Jupiter's outer atmosphere, to avoid any possibility of impact and biological contamination of one of its moons.
Kepler-90h resides in the circumstellar habitable zone of the parent star. The exoplanet, with a radius of 1.01 , is too large to be rocky, and because of this the planet itself may not be habitable. Hypothetically, large enough moons, with a sufficient atmosphere and pressure, may be able to support liquid water and potentially life. However, such moons do not usually form around planets, they would likely have to be captured from afar; e.g., a protoplanet running astray. A Jupiter-sized planet would likely form moons similar in size to Jupiter's Galilean Moons or Saturn's moon Titan. However, we know that even moons of this size can hold on to atmospheres and have magnetic fields, since Titan has an atmosphere thicker than Earth's and has stable bodies of liquid on its surface. A moon of similar size, Jupiter's Ganymede, has its own magnetic field.
Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 Extrasolar planet (many larger than Jupiter) Galileo Spacecraft (a mission that included both an orbiter and an atmospheric-entry probe) Juno probe 2009 Jupiter impact event 2010 Jupiter impact event Ulysses (spacecraft) Voyager 1, Voyager 2
SMARA (SMAll Reconnaissance of Atmospheres) is a swarm of tiny probes weighing less than 1 kilogram which is expected to zip through the clouds of Jupiter by 2030, in conjunction with ESA's JUICE mission, beaming home data about the gas giant's dense atmosphere. According to estimates it could survive for up to 15 minutes in Jupiter's atmosphere and transmit enough information to give scientists a greater understanding of the atmosphere of Jupiter. They will each transmit 20 megabits of data after all.
Some satellite systems have been known to have gas interactions between objects. Notable examples include the Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto systems. The Io plasma torus is a transfer of oxygen and sulfur from the tenuous atmosphere of Jupiter's volcanic moon, Io and other objects including Jupiter and Europa. A torus of oxygen and hydrogen produced by Saturn's moon, Enceladus forms part of the E ring around Saturn. Nitrogen gas transfer between Pluto and Charon has also been modelled and is expected to be observable by the New Horizons space probe. Similar tori produced by Saturn's moon Titan (nitrogen) and Neptune's moon Triton (hydrogen) is predicted.
Complex magnetic interactions have been observed in satellite systems. Most notably, the interaction of Jupiter's strong magnetic field with those of Ganymede and Io. Observations suggest that such interactions can cause the stripping of atmospheres from moons and the generation of spectacular auroras.
Gas in Io's atmosphere is stripped by Jupiter's magnetosphere, escaping to either the neutral cloud that surrounds Io, or the Io plasma torus, a ring of ionized particles that shares Io's orbit but co-rotates with the magnetosphere of Jupiter. Approximately one ton of material is removed from the atmosphere every second through this process so that it must be constantly replenished. The most dramatic source of are volcanic plumes, which pump 10 kg of sulfur dioxide per second into Io's atmosphere on average, though most of this condenses back onto the surface. Much of the sulfur dioxide in Io's atmosphere sustained by sunlight-driven sublimation of frozen on the surface. The day-side atmosphere is largely confined to within 40° of the equator, where the surface is warmest and most active volcanic plumes reside. A sublimation-driven atmosphere is also consistent with observations that Io's atmosphere is densest over the anti-Jupiter hemisphere, where frost is most abundant, and is densest when Io is closer to the Sun. However, some contributions from volcanic plumes are required as the highest observed densities have been seen near volcanic vents. Because the density of sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere is tied directly to surface temperature, Io's atmosphere partially collapses at night, or when Io is in the shadow of Jupiter (with an ~80% drop in column density). The collapse during eclipse is limited somewhat by the formation of a diffusion layer of sulfur monoxide in the lowest portion of the atmosphere, but the atmosphere pressure of Io's nightside atmosphere is two to four orders of magnitude less than at its peak just past noon. The minor constituents of Io's atmosphere, such as , , , and derive either from: direct volcanic outgassing; photodissociation, or chemical breakdown caused by solar ultraviolet radiation, from ; or the sputtering of surface deposits by charged particles from Jupiter's magnetosphere.
A Jupiter aerobot might operate at altitudes where the air pressure ranges from one to ten atmospheres, occasionally dropping lower for detailed studies. It would make atmospheric measurements and return imagery and remote sensing of weather phenomena, such as Jupiter's Great Red Spot. A Jupiter aerobot might also drop sondes deep into the atmosphere and relay their data back to an orbiter until the sondes are destroyed by temperature and pressure.
The belts and zones that divide Jupiter's atmosphere each have their own names and unique characteristics. They begin below the North and South Polar Regions, which extend from the poles to roughly 40–48° N/S. These bluish-gray regions are usually featureless.[31]
The atmosphere of Jupiter is home to hundreds of vortices—circular rotating structures that, as in the Earth's atmosphere, can be divided into two classes: cyclones and anticyclones.[8] Cyclones rotate in the direction similar to the rotation of the planet (counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern); anticyclones rotate in the reverse direction. However, unlike in the terrestrial atmosphere, anticyclones predominate over cyclones on Jupiter—more than 90% of vortices larger than 2000km in diameter are anticyclones.[66] The lifetime of Jovian vortices varies from several days to hundreds of years, depending on their size. For instance, the average lifetime of an anticyclone between 1000 and 6000km in diameter is 1–3 years.[67] Vortices have never been observed in the equatorial region of Jupiter (within 10° of latitude), where they are unstable.[11] As on any rapidly rotating planet, Jupiter's anticyclones are high pressure centers, while cyclones are low pressure.[38]
A primary atmosphere is an atmosphere of a planet that forms by accretion of gaseous matter from the accretion disc of the planet's sun. Planets such as Jupiter and Saturn have primary atmospheres. Primary atmospheres are very thick compared to secondary atmospheres like the one found on Earth. The primary atmosphere was lost on the terrestrial planets due to a combination of surface temperature, mass of the atoms and escape velocity of the planet.
Swann asked for 30 minutes of silence. According to Swann, his ability to see Jupiter took about three and a half minutes. In the session he made several reports on the physical features of Jupiter, such as its atmosphere and the surface of its core. Swann claimed to see bands of crystals in the atmosphere, which he likened to clouds and possibly like the rings of Saturn. The Voyager probe later confirmed the existence of the rings of Jupiter, although these rings are not in the planet's atmosphere. However, Swann's claim that crystals are present in the atmosphere is supported by observations by NASA's Galileo spacecraft of clouds of ammonia ice crystals in the northwest corner of Jupiter's Great Red Spot.
The first observations of the Jovian atmosphere at higher resolution than possible with Earth-based telescopes were taken by the Pioneer 10 and 11 spacecraft. The first truly detailed images of Jupiter's atmosphere were provided by the Voyagers.[23] The two spacecraft were able to image details at a resolution as low as 5km in size in various spectra, and also able to create "approach movies" of the atmosphere in motion.[23] The Galileo Probe, which suffered an antenna problem, saw less of Jupiter's atmosphere but at a better average resolution and a wider spectral bandwidth.[23]
The Great Red Spot should not be confused with the Great Dark Spot, a feature observed near Jupiter's north pole in 2000 by the Cassini–Huygens spacecraft.[94] A feature in the atmosphere of Neptune was also called the Great Dark Spot. The latter feature, imaged by Voyager 2 in 1989, may have been an atmospheric hole rather than a storm. It was no longer present in 1994, although a similar spot had appeared farther to the north.[95]
Jupiter has the largest planetary atmosphere in the Solar System, spanning over in altitude. Because Jupiter has no surface, the base of its atmosphere is usually considered to be the point at which atmospheric pressure is equal to .
Theoretical models indicate that if Jupiter had much more mass than it does at present, its atmosphere would collapse, and the planet would shrink. For small changes in mass, the radius would not change appreciably, but above about (1.6 Jupiter masses) the interior would become so much more compressed under the increased pressure that its volume would "decrease" despite the increasing amount of matter. As a result, Jupiter is thought to have about as large a diameter as a planet of its composition and evolutionary history can achieve. The process of further shrinkage with increasing mass would continue until appreciable stellar ignition was achieved, as in high-mass brown dwarfs having around 50 Jupiter masses. Jupiter would need to be about 75 times more massive to fuse hydrogen and become a star.
Earth-and spacecraft-based measurements have led to improved knowledge of the isotopic ratios in Jupiter's atmosphere. As of July 2003, the accepted value for the deuterium abundance is (2.25 ± 0.35)×10−5,[2] which probably represents the primordial value in the protosolar nebula that gave birth to the Solar System.[28] The ratio of nitrogen isotopes in the Jovian atmosphere, 15N to 14N, is 2.3×10−3, a third lower than that in the Earth's atmosphere (3.5×10−3).[2] The latter discovery is especially significant since the previous theories of Solar System formation considered the terrestrial value for the ratio of nitrogen isotopes to be primordial.[28]
The Kelvin–Helmholtz instability can be seen in the bands in planetary atmospheres such as Saturn and Jupiter, for example in the giant red spot vortex. In the atmosphere surrounding the giant red spot there is the biggest example of KHI that is known of and is caused by the shear force at the interface of the different layers of Jupiter's atmosphere. There have been many images captured where the ocean-wave like characteristics discussed earlier can be seen clearly, with as many as 4 shear layers visible.
The composition of Jupiter's atmosphere is similar to that of the planet as a whole.[2] Jupiter's atmosphere is the most comprehensively understood of those of all the gas giants because it was observed directly by the Galileo atmospheric probe when it entered the Jovian atmosphere on December 7, 1995.[27] Other sources of information about Jupiter's atmospheric composition include the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO),[28] the Galileo and Cassini orbiters,[29] and Earth-based observations.[2]
Circulation in Jupiter's atmosphere is markedly different from that in the atmosphere of Earth. The interior of Jupiter is fluid and lacks any solid surface. Therefore, convection may occur throughout the planet's outer molecular envelope. As of 2008, a comprehensive theory of the dynamics of the Jovian atmosphere has not been developed. Any such theory needs to explain the following facts: the existence of narrow stable bands and jets that are symmetric relative to Jupiter's equator, the strong prograde jet observed at the equator, the difference between zones and belts, and the origin and persistence of large vortices such as the Great Red Spot.[7]
Jupiter's upper atmosphere is about 88–92% hydrogen and 8–12% helium by percent volume of gas molecules. A helium atom has about four times as much mass as a hydrogen atom, so the composition changes when described as the proportion of mass contributed by different atoms. Thus, Jupiter's atmosphere is approximately 75% hydrogen and 24% helium by mass, with the remaining one percent of the mass consisting of other elements. The atmosphere contains trace amounts of methane, water vapor, ammonia, and silicon-based compounds. There are also traces of carbon, ethane, hydrogen sulfide, neon, oxygen, phosphine, and sulfur. The outermost layer of the atmosphere contains crystals of frozen ammonia. The interior contains denser materials—by mass it is roughly 71% hydrogen, 24% helium, and 5% other elements. Through infrared and ultraviolet measurements, trace amounts of benzene and other hydrocarbons have also been found.
The "Galileo" spacecraft was the first to have entered orbit around Jupiter, arriving in 1995 and studying the planet until 2003. During this period "Galileo" gathered a large amount of information about the Jovian system, making close approaches to all of the four large Galilean moons and finding evidence for thin atmospheres on three of them, as well as the possibility of liquid water beneath their surfaces. It also discovered a magnetic field around Ganymede. As it approached Jupiter, it also witnessed the impact of Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9. In December 1995, it sent an atmospheric probe into the Jovian atmosphere, so far the only craft to do so.
Because Jupiter is not a solid body, its upper atmosphere undergoes differential rotation. The rotation of Jupiter's polar atmosphere is about 5 minutes longer than that of the equatorial atmosphere; three systems are used as frames of reference, particularly when graphing the motion of atmospheric features. System I applies from the latitudes 10° N to 10° S; its period is the planet's shortest, at 9h 50m 30.0s. System II applies at all latitudes north and south of these; its period is 9h 55m 40.6s. System III was first defined by radio astronomers, and corresponds to the rotation of the planet's magnetosphere; its period is Jupiter's official rotation.
The atmosphere of Jupiter is classified into four layers, by increasing altitude: the troposphere, stratosphere, thermosphere and exosphere. Unlike the Earth's atmosphere, Jupiter's lacks a mesosphere.[13] Jupiter does not have a solid surface, and the lowest atmospheric layer, the troposphere, smoothly transitions into the planet's fluid interior.[3] This is a result of having temperatures and the pressures well above those of the critical points for hydrogen and helium, meaning that there is no sharp boundary between gas and liquid phases. Hydrogen becomes a supercritical fluid at a pressure of around 12 bar.[3]