Category Archives: Jovians

includes Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

Blog 6: Jupiter Fluid Dynamics

Jupiter has a very thick atmosphere with lots of temperature difference causing strong convective currents. These convective currents and Jupiter’s fast rotation give the planet it’s colorful bands and demonstrate different fluid behaviors. The image above, captured by the Juno Spacecraft, shows a storm in Jupiter’s atmosphere. The eddies are similar to that caused by vortex … Continue reading Blog 6: Jupiter Fluid Dynamics Continue reading

Posted in Class, Jovians, Physics | Tagged | Comments Off on Blog 6: Jupiter Fluid Dynamics

Blog 5: Saturn’s Rings

Saturn’s most distinct feature is its stunning rings, visible even through basic telescopes! Thanks to flyby and orbiter missions around the planet, we have wonderful photos of Saturn and its rings. The image above shows the rings on the night side of Saturn, part of which fall into the planet’s shadows and the other part … Continue reading Blog 5: Saturn’s Rings Continue reading

Posted in Class, Jovians | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Blog 5: Saturn’s Rings

The Potential (and the Potential Challenges) of Life on Europa

When discussing the potential of finding life in our solar system, people are inclined to think of discovering large and complex life forms such as humans on another planet. Surprisingly, if we are to find life in our solar system outside of Earth, it will most likely be in the form of microorganisms within another … Continue reading The Potential (and the Potential Challenges) of Life on Europa Continue reading

Posted in Jovians | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Potential (and the Potential Challenges) of Life on Europa

The Potential (and the Potential Challenges) of Life on Europa

When discussing the potential of finding life in our solar system, people are inclined to think of discovering large and complex life forms such as humans on another planet. Surprisingly, if we are to find life in our solar system outside of Earth, it will most likely be in the form of microorganisms within another … Continue reading The Potential (and the Potential Challenges) of Life on Europa Continue reading

Posted in Jovians | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Potential (and the Potential Challenges) of Life on Europa

Voyager 1

Voyager 1 is currently the farthest spacecraft we have ever sent out. It was launched in 1977 and is currently 141 AU or 13 billion miles away from Earth right now. It is traveling at 38,000 mph but has not even travel a full light day yet. The original purpose of the Voyager missions was … Continue reading Voyager 1 Continue reading

Posted in Jovians, Moons, Space Travel | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Voyager 1

Uranus: The Distant Ruler of Aquarius

This is Uranus, my favorite planet and the “ruler” of my astrological sign, Aquarius! Uranus is the 6th planet from the sun and one of the largest of our solar system, a cold, icy planet with peculiar rings that ushers the observer away from the inner planets into the farther regions of the solar system. […] Continue reading

Posted in Class, Jovians | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Uranus: The Distant Ruler of Aquarius

Blog 8 – Life on Enceladus?

Several Jovian moons are candidates for extraterrestrial life.  One of these is Enceladus, a medium-sized moon of Saturn.  Like Europa, there is strong evidence for a subsurface ocean, which is likely 30-40 kilometers below the moon’s surface, and then extends down another 30 kilometers.  Due to the suspected ocean’s thickness, it is more likely that […] Continue reading

Posted in Jovians, Moons | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Blog 8 – Life on Enceladus?

Casscenery (The Cassini Photos of Saturn)

As the 20 year long Cassini mission comes to an end, no one wants to miss the exciting events of the last 4.5 months. Cassini is slated to crash into the surface of Saturn on September 15th this year, but not before Cassini swoops progressively lower to the gas giant, giving scientists unprecedentedly close images … Continue reading Casscenery (The Cassini Photos of Saturn) Continue reading

Posted in Class, Jovians, Science | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Casscenery (The Cassini Photos of Saturn)

Jupiter’s Storms

On a world where the entire surface and most of the atmosphere are composed of dense, fast-moving clouds, you can imagine that the storms are slightly worse than our regular terrestrial thunderstorm. Of course, the most famous of Jupiter’s maelstroms is the Great Red Spot, aptly named for its blue color (kidding) and impressive diameter, […] Continue reading

Posted in Jovians, Observables | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Jupiter’s Storms

Europa’s Oceans & Aliens

In September of last year, the Hubble Space telescope observed what is believed to be plumes of water erupting from the surface of Jupiter’s moon, Europa. The surface of Europa is covered in a layer of ice of unknown thickness, and it is widely believed that there could be vast oceans of liquid water underneath […] Continue reading

Posted in Jovians, Moons | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Europa’s Oceans & Aliens