Jupiter Formed by Eating Tiny Planets
Jupiter Formed by Eating Tiny Planets
Jupiter may be the Pac-Man of our Solar System, gobbling up anything in its path. Scientists confirmed a long-held belief that Jupiter formed by breaking tiny planetary bodies apart and spewing them out into the gas surrounding the planets core. Thats right. Jupiter is a planet-eater.
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Scientists compared Junos measurements against various simulations of how Jupiter was created. The research focused on what makes up the planets core and the envelope of liquids and gasses around that core. They found there are more metals closer to the core than farther away from it. This indicates that Jupiter formed by breaking apart planetesimals, or tiny planets.
The peer-reviewed journal Astronomy & Astrophysics published the data in an article titled Jupiters inhomogeneous envelope. We saw the news on TimeOut.
Planetesimals were key elements in forming our Solar System. Those that werent gobbled up creating planets became comets or asteroids. Some moons, including the two orbiting Mars, may have started as planetesimals.
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https://nerdist.com/article/jupiter-formed-by-eating-tiny-planets/