Category Archives: Jovians

includes Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

Saturn’s Hexagon

Scientists at Harvard are trying to learn more about Saturn’s hexagonal storm on its north pole. While storms on Earth tend to be round or spiral in shape, this feature on Saturn is distinctly a hexagon, and we don’t fully know why! As of now, Harvard has created computer simulations that have indicated how polygonalContinue reading “Saturn’s Hexagon” Continue reading

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The Cassini Spacecraft and Huygens Probe

NASA’s Cassini Spacecraft, launched in 1997, flew by Venus and Earth’s Moon, through the Asteroid belt, and near Jupiter until it settled in the Saturn Planetary System for thirteen years. This was a historical mission for multiple reasons. Not only was it the first to orbit Saturn, but the Huygens Probe it carried was theContinue reading “The Cassini Spacecraft and Huygens Probe” Continue reading

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Cassini-Huygens Mission

Cassini-Huygens was a solar system mission that explored Saturn and its surroundings, such as its rings, satellites, and moons. The spacecraft was launched from Earth on October 15, 1997. On the way to Saturn, the spacecraft flew by Venus, Earth, the asteroid belt, and Jupiter. Cassini was active for 20 years and spent 13 yearsContinue reading “Cassini-Huygens Mission” Continue reading

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Voyager Mission

You may have heard of the twin Voyager spacecraft as the two longest-flying spacecraft ever and the only mission to travel to all four outer planets. However, the original purpose of the Voyager mission was to only study Jupiter and Saturn. The two spacecraft were launched over forty years ago in late 1977. Their launchContinue reading “Voyager Mission” Continue reading

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Blog 3 Falling into Jupiter

Once I got to know about the names of gaseous giants in the outer part of our solar system, I became extremely curious about what the world would look like under their thick atmosphere. The video I shared in this blog provides a perfect fulfillment to my desire of knowing the biggest planet in ourContinue reading “Blog 3 Falling into Jupiter” Continue reading

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All About Neptune!

Neptune has always been my favorite planet. I don’t know if it’s its pretty blue color, its name, or the fact that I did a project on it in elementary school that drew me towards it, but I’ve always loved Neptune. Neptune is the 8th planet from the Sun in our Solar System and namedContinue reading “All About Neptune!” Continue reading

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The Great Red Spot

The Great Red Spot refers to a gigantic storm on the planet Jupiter. Imagine the largest hurricane you can think of, multiply that by 1000, then make the entire vortex the color of a penny. In fact, this hurricane is so big that, at one point, it was three times the diameter of Earth. FirstContinue reading “The Great Red Spot” Continue reading

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How Big Can a Planet Get?

Jupiter is big. Not only is it the biggest planet in our solar system, but it is large enough to fit all the other planets in the solar system inside of it. However, Jupiter is not as dense as Earth, and even though it can fit about 1,300 Earths inside of it, it is approximatelyContinue reading “How Big Can a Planet Get?” Continue reading

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The Interiors of the Giants of the Solar System

The giants of our solar system, other than the Sun of course, are quite different from the terrestrial planets whether it comes to the atmospheres, the surfaces, size, or other planetary features. One key difference is the interior of these giant planets. Terrestrial planets, for context, have a very dense core followed by a rockyContinue reading “The Interiors of the Giants of the Solar System” Continue reading

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Big Planets’ Moons and Life Outside “Habitability”

Astrobiology has long relied on the concept of a “habitable zone”, that is a zone around a star that is the right distance from said star to hold liquid water, and therefore life. This concept is absolutely valuable, especially insofar as it allows us to classify new exoplanets and identify potential exoplanets that may hostContinue reading “Big Planets’ Moons and Life Outside “Habitability”” Continue reading

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