why is jupiter such a violent planet??

Answer 1

The only violence on Jupiter is the wind, and gravity and radiation.

Jupiter has such violent winds because it is VERY large, because of it's early size it sucked up most of the gas and debris of the early mid-solar system - so vast amounts of hydrogen and helium and pretty much whatever else was around got sucked into Jupiter's gravity well. The differing layers of Jupiter and the temperature differences from the poles to the equator of Jupiter have created one of the most spectacular sights in the Solar System, the bands and violent wind-storms of Jupiter.

All of the other known gas giants (Saturn, Uranus and Neptune) exhibit storms but none are as visually amazing as Jupiter.

If it was much larger Jupiter would glow dimly as a result of the heat generated by the winds and motion of the planet (as there is an actual planet at the bottom of all that gas about the size of 3-4 Earths). if Jupiter was much larger than it is, it could might be able to intermittently fuse elements and would become it's own kind of mini-star called a brown dwarf.

This is not like the science-fiction version some people might remember from the movie 2010. In that movie Jupiter is "converted" into a star and is "born" as a star just as our heros escape.

As it is or if it was just a little larger, Jupiter would visibly glow an incandecent red on the night side, it would only put out a few hundred degrees of heat like a giant coal ember in the sky, Infrared cameras can see Jupiter glowing brightly in the infrared.

Jupiter is big but not big enough to join the club as a "Star" but is just a very big planet.

As it stands, Jupiter puts out an enomous radiation field, because of the gravity being so strong, Hydrogen and other elements are layered like our ocean and atmosphere into a big natural electricity generator. So strong is the field that it extends for millions of miles but close in, the inner moons of Jupiter are forever bathed in what would be deadly radiation to humans.

Of the four major moons the innermost 2 , Io and Europa would be dangerous if not outright deadly to human astronauts to land on (See wiki of Voyage to the Planets) which "documents" a fictional trip around the solar system.

Io has featured in some major movies coming from Hollywood because IT is violent. Jupiter is so large that when moons orbiting the planet get too close , the tides on the moons become so large that the moons themselves start to experience heaving and movement in their surfaces. (see Voyage to the Solar System, Outland and 2010),

In Outland, Sean Connery pays hommage to the High Noon spagetti western so Io actually becomes a violent place complete with sex,crime drugs, violence, and guns.

Io geologically, is a tortured place, where the largest and most powerful volcanos in the solar system erupt spectaularly (some probably every day). You could think of Io kind of like the Solar System's Yellowstone Park.

Speculating about Io, it's possible that Io was once an ice moon like the other large moons of Jupiter, but that the orbit has decayed that the ice boiled off due to constant volcanos it or will eventually decay further and it will get drawn closer into Jupiter's gravity well. If it gets too close the gravity of Jupiter will tear the moon apart into a close in asteroid belt and eventually a ring probably more spectacular than that of even Saturn.

Europa itself is not spared , although further away from Jupiter, the surface icesheet is criss-crossed with gigantic cracks and shifts in the ice. It's possible the discoloration of these cracks is made by fresh sulphur laden ocean water from below, if that's the case, scientists speculate that Europa's combination of water, heat and freely available chemicals similar to the deep sea vents found on Earth, may in fact harbor primitive life (like pond scum or something similar) or even more advanced forms of life similar to those found on/near the sea-bed vents.

If we found such life that developed independently of Earth on Europa, it would tell us that basically there is life all over the universe. Since we could say, maybe mostly pond scum, but it would confirm optimistic speculations and significantly increase the odds of life elsewhere in the universe).

Answer 2

Hello Jomar: Hmm-m, a planet the size of Jupiter. Jupiter is 88,846 Miles in diameter. Earth is 7,926 Miles in diameter. So this mythical planet would be ten times wider than Earth, and having similar composition might have a mass 100 to 1000 times that of Earth. So it would have a huge gravitational pull. You said nothing about this mythical planet's speed of rotation. That is a problem for us in suggesting possibilities for this projected planet situation. "Jupiter" is a gas giant, comprized mainly of hydrogen gas with some helium, and it has has no solid crust like the Earth. Jupiter is spinning so fast that material within the planet is thrown owtward making the planet appear to bulge at its center or equator. Were a solid, water covered, planet the size of Jupiter to spin at the same rate as Jupiter, I do not think that it would retain water within its seas and oceans. I think that large bodies of water would be in constant motion across the surface. I am not certain if such a mass could stick together in the face of such rapid spinning. Spinning slower would help a lot to preserve the entity as a whole. With this much mass, the core of the planet would be extremely hot. Volcanic activity would be a dominant factor in the planet's existance. Plate shifting on the surface crust would be significantly faster than that on Earth. Having greater mass and gravity than the Earth, it is logical that the atmosphere would be thicker and more dense (heavier). So, the atmospheric pressure on this planet would be way in excess of 14 PSI. Retention of gas molecules would be excellent. Somewhere along in here I have run out of ideas.

Answer 3

Jupiter can be called a ' Gas Planet ' because it is all made of gas and you cant actually land on Jupiter

Answer 4

Jupiter's gas is very violent. The gas makes the planet violent. (at least so I think)

Answer 5

Who told you that?, Why are you interested?
are you talking about the planet Jupiter or the Mythological one?

Answer 6

Jupiter is gaseous and we have seen huge tornadoes on its surface.
Jupiter is sometimes considered a "failed" star because of its size.

Answer 7

wasn't even aware there was life there. Are you referring to the roman mythology about Jupiter the god of war.

Answer 8

IT is so large that you would be crushed by your own weight.