Jupiter

NASA's Juno mission is exploring Jupiter from orbit, beaming back amazing photos, atmospheric data and other observations about the largest planet in our solar system. The Juno probe launched Aug. 5, 2011 and arrived in orbit around Jupiter on July 4, 2016. It is the farthest space probe ever to be powered by solar arrays. The $1.1 billion mission is expected to run through July 2021, but the science of Jupiter it returns will last a lifetime. Learn more about Juno's Jupiter discoveries here.

Related Topics: NASA, Jupiter

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Artist's illustration showing a small moon Amalthea in the foreground and Jupiter in the background.

Amalthea: Jupiter’s unusual inner moon

By Stefanie Waldek published

Reference Learn about Jupiter’s weird inner moon Amalthea. It was not only the fifth Jovian satellite to be discovered, but it is also the fifth-largest.

Venus (lower left) and Jupiter during a close conjunction over Rome on May 1, 2022.

Venus and Jupiter shine together over Rome (photo)

By Elizabeth Howell published

A new image captures two planets with ancient significance meeting up over the famous old city of Rome on Sunday (May 1).

The red and stormy planet.

Curious Kids: Will the big storm on Jupiter ever go away?

By Lucyna Kedziora-Chudczer published

The Great Red Spot is like the grandfather of Jupiter's storms. It has been roaming for many, many years — but recently we’ve seen it get smaller.

mother and daughter viewing night sky with a telescope

The brightest planets in May's night sky: How and when to see them

By Joe Rao published

Our May night sky viewing guide tells you which planets are visible in May's night sky and how you can see them.

A diagram showing Venus and Jupiter in conjunction in the predawn sky over Rome, Italy, on May 1, 2022.

Venus and Jupiter shine together overnight, here's how to watch the spectacle live online

By Tereza Pultarova published

Tune into a Virtual Telescope Project livestream to watch live as Jupiter and Venus meet in the night sky.

Planets Jupiter, Venus, Mars and Saturn, alongside the moon, shine above Rome at dawn, while the Chinese space station module Tianhe crosses the sky on April 27, 2022.

ISS and China's space station photobomb image of 4 planets aligned in the sky

By Jeanna Bryner published

The International Space Station and China's space station photobombed a four-planet line-up in the early morning sky for Italian astrophysicist Gianluca Masi.

A view of the close conjunction of Venus and Jupiter in the southeast sky, just before sunrise on April 30.

Don't miss Venus and Jupiter shine extra close in the morning sky Saturday!

By Samantha Mathewson published

Venus and Jupiter — the two brightest planets in the sky — are headed for a close encounter tomorrow (April 30).

A view of Io captured by the Galileo spacecraft.

Mysterious dunes on Jupiter's volcanic moon Io may be formed by lava

By Samantha Mathewson published

Jupiter's super-volcanic moon, Io, boasts grand, meandering dunes created by lava flows beneath the moon's surface, a new study shows.

A diagram showing the location of the moon, Jupiter and Venus before sunrise on April 26, 2022.

Venus and Jupiter align this week in spectacular morning sky shows

By Joe Rao published

The celestial highlight in the days ahead will involve the three brightest objects in the nighttime sky: the moon and the planets Venus and Jupiter.

NASA's Juno spacecraft imaged Jupiter and Ganymede during the mission's 40th close pass by the giant planet on Feb. 25, 2022.

Shadow of Jupiter's largest moon looms in magnificent new Juno photo

By Elizabeth Howell published

Giant Jupiter and the shadow of its biggest moon, Ganymede, dominate the view in a newly shared image based on a NASA spacecraft data.

An artist's depiction of pockets of water forming double ridges on Jupiter's moon Europa.

Icy Europa's mysterious double ridges may hint at hidden pockets of water

By Rahul Rao published

A ridge etched into the ice sheet of Greenland provides an unexpected hint that plentiful pockets of water may be trapped just underneath the surface of Jupiter's ice-covered moon Europa.

The predawn sky in April 2022 brings a dance of morning planets as Jupiter, Venus, Mars and Saturn are all visible before sunrise.

April's sky brings dance of 4 morning planets: See Jupiter, Venus, Mars and Saturn.

By Joe Rao published

As the planets rise in April we're given stunning views, if you know where to look.

An artist's illustration of how the "chaos terran" of Jupiter's moon Europa may have liquid water pooling beneath its surface.

'Chaos' regions of Jupiter's icy moon Europa may increase chance for life

By Elizabeth Howell published

The "Chaos" regions on Jupiter's moon Europa might hold keys to the possible existence of life in the ocean under the moon's icy crust.

The Jupiter explorer Juno discovered previously unknown craters on the surface of the gas giant's largest moon Ganymede.

NASA flyby of Jupiter's big moon Ganymede reveals auroras and huge unknown craters

By Tereza Pultarova published

Last year's Juno flyby at Jupiter's largest moon Ganymede revealed a surface covered in craters as well as shimmering auroras stretching between the moon's poles and the equator.

Taken during Juno's 39th close flyby of Jupiter on Jan. 12, 2022, this stunning view captures two of the planet's moons: Io (left) and Europa (right).

NASA spacecraft snaps gorgeous new photo of Jupiter's moons Io and Europa

By Samantha Mathewson published

NASA's Juno spacecraft beamed back stunning new photos of Jupiter's moons, Io and Europa.

Jupiter’s moon Io is the most volcanically active world in the solar system. This high-resolution image of Jupiter’s fifth moon was captured by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft and was published on 18, Dec. 1997.

Io: A guide to Jupiter’s volcanic moon

By Daisy Dobrijevic published

Reference Io is Jupiter’s fifth moon and its third-largest. It is the most volcanically active body in the solar system.

The four gas giants of our solar system are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are collectively known as Jovian planets, meaning “Jupiter-like”.

Gas giants: Jovian planets of our solar system and beyond

By Elizabeth Howell published

Reference The solar system gas giants – Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune – also known as Jovian planets are helping us learn more about gaseous exoplanets.

In April 2020, NASA's Juno spacecraft spotted something strange in Jupiter's atmosphere. Scientists later identified the observation as a meteor.

Meteor streaks through Jupiter's atmosphere as NASA spacecraft watches

By Chelsea Gohd published

When a rogue meteor careened through the atmosphere of Jupiter last year, it caught the attention of NASA's Juno spacecraft in orbit around the giant planet.

Jupiter and the shadow of its moon Ganymede, in a 2022 image based on a May 2019 flyby of the Juno spacecraft.

Jupiter's big moon Ganymede casts giant shadow in stunning Juno photo by citizen scientist

By Elizabeth Howell published

A powerful new picture of Jupiter posted by a citizen scientist shows the planet looming large with the shadow of its biggest moon Ganymede blanketing its clouds.

Jupiter's southern hemisphere, as seen by NASA's Juno spacecraft. In a new study, NASA's NuSTAR space telescope spots the highest-energy light from Jupiter.

A mystery in Jupiter's atmosphere sheds light on solar system's past

By Tereza Pultarova published

Jupiter's atmosphere has a strange composition, but it could be explained if the planet formed farther away from the sun than where it orbits today, a new study suggests.