Astronomers from Israel's Weizmann Institute of Science say the planet Jupiter is smaller than previously thought. About this report Natural astronomy.
According to scientists, Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. According to a new study, the real size of the gas giant turned out to be slightly smaller than expected – its equatorial diameter is less than 8 km and its polar diameter is less than 24 km.
At the same time, Professor Yochai Kaspi from the Weizmann Institute emphasized that this lack of precision seems to be insignificant. The updated data will allow models of Jupiter's interior to better match gravity data and measurements of its atmosphere.
Caspi added that a planet's size is usually determined by calculating its distance and also by observing its rotation. But to achieve high accuracy, more advanced methods are needed. The last time precise measurements of Jupiter were made was nearly 50 years ago, when the planet was discovered by the Voyager and Pioneer spacecraft. The new analysis was made possible by NASA's Juno mission. This spacecraft has been exploring Jupiter since 2016 and transmitting huge amounts of data to Earth.
It is these data that show that the size of the gas giant planet is slightly different than what humans thought. As scientists note, information about Jupiter will help better understand how our planets and star systems formed in the first place – it is thought that the gas giant was the first planet of the solar system.
Previously, ammonia was first discovered on Jupiter's satellite.
