Jupiter

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NASA Launches Rocket on Trip That Will Take 6 Years

Craft will arrive at Jupiter moon Europa in 2030 to begin its work

(Newser) - NASA launched a rocket to the moon on Monday, but this particular moon will take nearly six years to reach. The spacecraft known as Europa Clipper took off for the Jupiter moon of Europa and is scheduled to arrive in 2030, reports Space.com . Once the journey is complete, the...

Mission to Jupiter Moon Is a Go, NASA Says

Project is to assess suitability for life in possible ocean on Europa

(Newser) - NASA on Monday approved next month's launch to Jupiter's moon Europa after reviewing the spacecraft's ability to withstand the intense radiation there. Questions about the reliability of the transistors on the Europa Clipper spacecraft arose earlier this year after similar problems cropped up elsewhere, the AP reports....

Jupiter, Mars to Be Chummy in Night Sky This Week

Planets will seem extremely close in pre-dawn skies of Wednesday

(Newser) - Mars and Jupiter are cozying up in the night sky for their closest rendezvous this decade. They'll be so close early Wednesday, at least from our perspective, that just a sliver of moon could fit between them. In reality, our solar system's biggest planet and its dimmer, reddish...

NASA Spots a 'Super Jupiter'
NASA Spots
a 'Super Jupiter'

NASA Spots a 'Super Jupiter'

Planet takes more than a century to go around its star

(Newser) - A super Jupiter has been spotted around a neighboring star by the Webb Space Telescope—and it has a super orbit. As the AP reports, the planet is roughly the same diameter as Jupiter, but with six times the mass. Its atmosphere is also rich in hydrogen like Jupiter's....

NASA Releases 'Stunning' Images of a Jupiter Moon

It's been more than 20 years since we got this close to the volcanic Io

(Newser) - A NASA spacecraft paid a rare visit to an old friend over the holiday weekend—the volcanic Jupiter moon of Io, reports NPR . The Juno craft made a close flyby, at just under 1,000 miles, for the first time in 20 years and captured new photos that NASA is...

Spacecraft Starts Long Trip to Explore Jupiter's Moons

Mission seeks to determine whether underground oceans could support life

(Newser) - A European spacecraft rocketed away Friday on a decadelong quest to explore Jupiter and three of its icy moons that could hold buried oceans. The journey began with a perfect liftoff by the Ariane rocket from French Guiana on the coast of South America. But there were tense minutes later...

'Planet Collectors,' This Is Your Week

5 planets—Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus, and Mars—will be lining up, with best viewing Tuesday

(Newser) - Keep an eye to the sky this week for a chance to see a planetary hangout. Five planets—Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus, and Mars—will line up near the moon, per the AP . More details:
  • Where and when can you see them? The best day to catch the whole group
...

Hold Up Your Pinkie for Tonight's Sky Event

Jupiter, Venus 'conjunction' will make planets seem to be very close; they're still 400M miles apart

(Newser) - Jupiter and Venus are more than 400 million miles apart, but on Wednesday night, they'll appear to be just a pinkie finger's length apart, with your hand held at arm's length. That's according to AccuWeather , which notes that the month of March will kick off with...

Space Trivia Buffs: There's a New Leader in Moons

Jupiter adds 12 to reach 92 and move ahead of Saturn

(Newser) - Astronomers have discovered 12 new moons around Jupiter, putting the total count at a record-breaking 92. That's more than any other planet in our solar system. Saturn, the one-time leader, is second with 83 confirmed moons. The Jupiter moons were added recently to a list kept by the International...

NASA Hasn't Been This Close to Europa Since 2000

Juno spacecraft got within 219 miles of Jupiter's icy moon

(Newser) - NASA's Juno spacecraft has made the closest approach to Jupiter’s tantalizing, icy moon Europa in more than 20 years. Juno on Thursday zipped within approximately 219 miles of Europa, thought to have an ocean flowing beneath its thick frozen crust, raising the possibility of underwater life. Scientists hailed...

2 Events to Give Earth a Better Look at Jupiter

Planet will be a mere 367 million miles away on Monday

(Newser) - Citizens of Earth are about to get a better look than usual at Jupiter, as it comes closer to Earth than it's been since 1963. "Jupiter is so bright and brilliant that a really nice thing about it is even in a city, in the middle of a...

'We’ve Never Seen Jupiter Like This'

Webb telescope captures stunning images

(Newser) - The world’s newest and biggest space telescope is showing Jupiter as never before, auroras and all. Scientists released the shots of the solar system's biggest planet Monday. The James Webb Space Telescope took the photos in July, capturing unprecedented views of Jupiter’s northern and southern lights, and...

Rare Planetary Event to Grace Night Skies in June
Ever See 5 Planets
Lined Up Before?
Here's Your Chance
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Ever See 5 Planets Lined Up Before? Here's Your Chance

Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn will all be aligned in June

(Newser) - Get ready for a planetary sky show not seen since "Hey Ya!" topped the charts and Mark Zuckerberg was launching Facebook out of his college dorm room. Throughout the month of June, those on the US mainland will be able to see, sans telescope, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter,...

Venus, Jupiter to Converge This Weekend

Planets' conjunction best viewed early Saturday

(Newser) - Despite being millions of miles apart, Venus and Jupiter appear to meet in the night sky about once a year in what's known as a conjunction. But skywatchers who take in the sight this year are in for a real treat, as the planets will appear much closer than...

Juno Gets Close-Ups of Jupiter's Biggest Moon

They're the first shots of Ganymede since 2000

(Newser) - NASA’s Juno spacecraft has provided the first close-ups of Jupiter’s largest moon in two decades. Juno zoomed past icy Ganymede on Monday, passing within 645 miles. The last time a spacecraft came that close was in 2000 when NASA’s Galileo spacecraft swept past our solar system’s...

Newly Discovered Planet 'Is a Very Hellish World'

TOI-1431b is 3 times the size of Jupiter and hotter

(Newser) - Being 490 light-years from Earth, a newly discovered planet would be difficult to get to. That's just as well. "This is a very hellish world," an astrophysicist said. That's because, the team that pinpointed it found, TOI-1431b is inhospitably hot—hot enough to melt metal, hotter...

Remember Monday Night's Treat in the Sky

Jupiter and Saturn will appear nearly as one planet, a celestial rarity

(Newser) - The 2020 winter solstice has arrived, and along with it a moment that sky watchers have been anticipating for a while. Jupiter and Saturn will be so close in the night sky that they'll be difficult to distinguish as separate planets, per CNN . This so-called Great Conjunction hasn't...

Once-in-a-Lifetime Event to Occur Monday After Sunset

A Great Conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter last happened in 1623

(Newser) - Jupiter and Saturn will merge in the night sky Monday, appearing closer to one another than they have since Galileo’s time in the 17th century, the AP reports. Astronomers say so-called conjunctions between the two largest planets in our solar system aren't particularly rare. Jupiter passes its neighbor...

This Year's Solstice Has a Rare Bonus
This Solstice,
a Sight Not
Seen Since
Middle Ages
in case you missed it

This Solstice, a Sight Not Seen Since Middle Ages

Jupiter and Saturn will be in close alignment, the closest seen since 1226

(Newser) - This year's winter solstice comes with a nice bonus for sky watchers: Jupiter and Saturn will be so close they will look like a double planet on Dec. 21, reports Fox Science . In fact, earthlings haven't had a chance to glimpse the pair so close since the Middle...

Scientists Discover Surprise About Jupiter's Icy Moon
Moon of Jupiter
Reveals a Surprise
new study

Moon of Jupiter Reveals a Surprise

Researchers say Europa glows in the dark

(Newser) - Scientists have just figured something out about the Jupiter moon Europa—it glows in the dark. Which, as a post at NASA points out, might not seem that weird to a layman. After all, we look up and see our own moon glowing in the night sky. But something entirely...

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