The atmosphere of Jupiter is divided into four layers: the troposphere, stratosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. Each layer plays a unique role in the functioning of Jupiter.
Although Jupiter is a gas giant, it does have a solid core. Its core primarily consists of iron and silicon, with a volume roughly 2 to 3 times that of Earth’s core.
Due to its extremely high density, the mass of Jupiter’s core is estimated to be about 10 to 15 times that of Earth’s core. Therefore, even with a drill multiple times harder than diamond, it would be impossible to reach Jupiter’s core.
Jupiter, despite being a gas giant, has a solid core.
Now, if you were standing on the surface of Jupiter, could you fall into its core? This seems impossible. First of all, the core of Jupiter does not have a clear boundary; moving outward from the core is a gradual process of dilution. The upper core consists of a mixture of rock and hydrogen, gradually transitioning to a layer of liquid metallic hydrogen, followed by gaseous hydrogen above.
The phase transition pressure of this liquid hydrogen is about 2 million atmospheres, with a transition temperature of approximately 10,000K. When the temperature at the core boundary reaches around 36,000K, the internal pressure can reach 3,000 to 4,000 GPa, which is equivalent to 30 to 40 million atmospheres.
Liquid hydrogen transitions into gaseous hydrogen, which constitutes Jupiter’s atmosphere. Scientists consider the point where the atmospheric pressure is 1 bar, corresponding to a depth of about 1 Earth atmosphere, as the surface of Jupiter, with a thickness of about 5,000 km from the upper layer to this point. The primary components of the upper atmosphere are 88-92% hydrogen and about 7-11% helium, with the remaining 1% comprising methane, water vapor, ammonia, silicon compounds, carbon, ethane, hydrogen sulfide, neon, oxygen, phosphine, and trace elements such as sulfur.
Jupiter’s atmosphere is full of winds and clouds, with storm speeds reaching up to 150 meters/second.
The atmosphere of Jupiter is structured into four layers: the troposphere, stratosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. The temperature in the outermost layer of the atmosphere is about 165K (-108 degrees Celsius), gradually increasing towards the interior, with temperature fluctuations. In the hotter layer, temperatures can reach up to 1,000K, while descending into the stratosphere, temperatures drop to 200K. As one goes deeper, the pressure and temperature continually rise until hydrogen transitions to liquid hydrogen, with temperatures reaching as high as 10,000K.
Jupiter’s atmosphere is turbulent and cloudy, with maximum storm speeds reaching up to 150 meters/second, compared to hurricane category 17 on Earth, which only reaches about 60 meters/second. The Great Red Spot of Jupiter is a massive storm that has persisted for hundreds of years. Jupiter’s magnetic field is 14 times stronger than Earth’s, which causes lightning produced by it to be 10,000 times more powerful than that on Earth, capable of tearing apart and destroying almost everything.
This is a glimpse into the environment of Jupiter that humanity can comprehend. This knowledge is not based on imagination but has been acquired by scientists through decades of scientific modeling based on countless data and images collected from numerous observations and explorations.
Jupiter’s magnetic field is 14 times stronger than Earth’s.
In such an environment, how could a person stand on Jupiter, and how could they fall into its core? We can imagine that if a spacecraft were to send a person to Jupiter and let them wear a spacesuit outside the cabin to fall freely into Jupiter, the process they might experience would be as follows:
If the spacesuit could withstand the extreme pressure and temperature, theoretically, they could fall to a depth of 5,000 km. However, during this process, the acceleration would increase, and the friction temperature with Jupiter’s atmosphere would also rise, making it unbearable even for steel. Thus, during the fall, their body would be torn apart and incinerated.
If any remnants of this disintegration and burning could reach the troposphere, they would be ravaged by storms and lightning, eventually merging completely into Jupiter’s atmosphere and ultimately blending into liquid hydrogen under increasing pressure and temperature without leaving a trace.
Galileo – Jupiter probe.
Galileo, the probe launched by NASA, completed its mission to explore Jupiter beyond expectations, crashing into the largest planet in the Solar System as planned on the morning of September 22, 2003. During its solitary exploration mission lasting 8 years, 1,500 representatives from all walks of life related to Galileo gathered at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to conclude it.
The Galileo probe weighed about 345 kg, with a thick heat shield weighing 200 kg. When it entered Jupiter’s atmosphere at a speed of 170,000 km/h (47 km/s), it underwent extreme acceleration with temperatures rapidly rising to 10,000 degrees Celsius. Under the influence of such high temperature and pressure, it disintegrated and burned in a matter of minutes, disappearing without a trace and becoming trace elements in Jupiter’s dense atmosphere and liquid hydrogen.
