What are the main characteristics of the planet Jupiter?

Jupiter helped revolutionize the way we saw the universe and ourselves in 1610, when Galileo discovered Jupiter's four large moons — Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, now known as the Galilean moons. read more

Jupiter is the most massive planet in our solar system, more than twice as massive as all the other planets combined, and had it been about 80 times more massive, it would have actually become a star instead of a planet. read more

Besides the Great Red Spot, Jupiter has bands of swirling cloud layers. The Great Red Spot also rotates counterclockwise and takes six days to circumnavigate the planet. Jupiter has a system of faint rings. The planet's magnetosphere is about 14 times stronger than Earth's. Jupiter has a vast number of moons. Scientists believe there are about 67. read more

By Mary MacIntosh; Updated April 24, 2017 The planet Jupiter, named after the Roman king of the gods, has been a notable astronomical object since ancient times. read more