Is there solid rock in Jupiter?

Because there is no solid ground, the surface of Jupiter is defined as the point where the atmospheric pressure is equal to that of Earth. At this point, the pull of gravity is almost two and a half times stronger than it is on our planet.

Why don’t we see any craters on Jupiter or Saturn?

On the giant gas planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, we do not see any craters because there is no visible solid surface for the meteors to hit. On Mercury, where there is no atmosphere, there is no weather to erode away the craters, so most of the craters are still visible.

Why can’t we see the cores of Jupiter and Saturn?

Under the force of gravity, the heavier elements sink toward the inner parts of a liquid or gaseous planet. Both Jupiter and Saturn, therefore, have cores composed of heavier rock, metal, and ice, but we cannot see these regions directly. In fact, when we look down from above, all we see is the atmosphere with its swirling clouds ( Figure 7.11 ).

Why can’t we understand Jupiter?

That’s why humans have sent spacecraft to the Moon, Venus, Mars, Saturn’s moon, Titan, and more. But there are a few places in the solar system we will never understand as well as we’d like. One of them is Jupiter. Jupiter is made of mostly hydrogen and helium gas. So, trying to land on it would be like trying to land on a cloud here on Earth.

Why are comets so close to Jupiter and Saturn?

Likely because they have the strongest gravitational fields of the Sun’s planets, are near the asteroid belt where there are many potential moons to pick up, and also much closer to the Oort cloud where comets seem to be in storage and frequently dropped into the neighborhoods of Saturn and Jupiter.

Why are Jupiter and Saturn called gas planets?

On Earth, both hydrogen and helium are gases, so Jupiter and Saturn are sometimes called gas planets. But, this name is misleading. Jupiter and Saturn are so large that the gas is compressed in their interior until the hydrogen becomes a liquid.