I have a question about our gas giant planets.?

Question

Jupiter, Saturn, yada. This seems to be the stuff of stars. Now I am no physics or mathematical student (let alone a genius). They sound to me like failed stars. Let's assume they are. My question is this, "Would it still be possible for them to 'ignite?'"

Answer 1

It's all a matter of mass. No need to be a genius or expert. If Jupiter had been about ten times more massive, it would probably have been a red dwarf. If it was about a hundred times more massive, the pressures at the core might be enough for nuclear fusion to take place and it would be a star. I can't cite one, but I'll bet there are plenty of sites that would give the specifics on these things.

So to answer your question, no. There isn't enough mass available in the solar system to make another star.

Answer 2

Jupiter and Saturn have nowhere near enough mass to be stars. Even if all the matter in the solarsystem minus the Sun were to be clumped together in Jupiter it wouldn´t be close. Jupiter would have to be atleast 70 times as massive to have a chance at being a red dwarf star. It´s not even a brown dwarf. It is a planet, a gas giant. It is putting out more energy than it receives from the sun but that is due to heat emitted from the gravitational crunching that has been going on since Jupiter was born. There may also be some radiodecay in its rocky core which is 13 times a massive as earth but there is no nuclear fusion going on.

Answer 3

Jupiter can actually be called a type of dwarf star, as it is giving out more heat than recieving heat from the sun, just that jupiter doesn't have enough mass to start a nuclear fusion

Answer 4

No, they do not have enough mass.

Answer 5

I dont think so!..