• What are the moons of Jupiter?
• Discovery of the moons of Jupiter
• Name of the moons of Jupiter
• How far apart are the moons of Jupiter?
• Jupiter's moons that have water

We explain what the moons of Jupiter are, how they were discovered and the list with their names. Also, the distance between Jupiter and its moons.

There are few larger moons greater than 3,100 kilometers.

What are the moons of Jupiter?

In astronomy, the moons of Jupiter are the set of natural satellites orbiting this giant planet in the outer solar system. East planet, as its name reflects (Jupiter is the Roman name of the Greek god Zeus, father and ruler of the divine Olympus) is often considered the "king" of the planets given its enormous size, equivalent to 318 times that of the Earth.

So far, the existence of about 79 moons of Jupiter is known, which makes it the planet with the largest entourage in the world. Solar system. These moons have vastly different orbital characteristics, ranging from circular to eccentric and inclined orbital paths, in some cases rotating against the direction of rotation of Jupiter. In terms of their physical appearance, there are few larger ones, greater than 3,100 kilometers; while the rest ranges between 5 and 250 kilometers.

So far it is thought that the moons of Jupiter were formed from the same cluster of gases and matter from which the planet arose, although the smaller ones may be the result of the destruction of previous larger satellites, lost during Jupiter's early history. Some are even assumed to be a direct product of the transit of asteroidsseduced by the huge gravity of the king planet.

Discovery of the moons of Jupiter

The total number of Jupiterian satellites today stands at 79.

The four largest moons are called the "Galilean satellites", since they were discovered in 1610 by the famous Galileo Galilei, and were the first astronomical objects discovered orbiting another planet, although there are records of informal sightings attributed to the Chinese astronomer Gan From (c. 364 BC).

In 1892 an additional moon to the Galileans was discovered, and with the help of better and more powerful telescopes, moons continued to be added to the list in 1904, 1905, 1908, 1914, 1938, 1951, and 1974. The arrival of the Voyaguer space probe to Jupiter in 1979 revealed many more, until 32 more moons were discovered in 1999 and 2003. , using ground-based detectors, and finally in 2017 an additional 12 were spotted with an upgraded telescope with a new 570-megapixel camera. The total number of Jupiterian satellites today stands at 79.

Name of the moons of Jupiter

The list of the numerous moons of Jupiter and their respective names is as follows:

• Metis. 43 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1979.
• Adrastea. Irregular in diameter (26x20x16), discovered in 1979.
• Amalthea. Irregular in diameter (262x146x134), discovered in 1892.
• Thebe. Irregular in diameter (110 × 90), discovered in 1979.
• Io. 3643 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1610.
• Europe. 3122 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1610.
• Ganymede 5262 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1610.
• Callisto. 4821 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1610.
• Themisto. 8 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1975.
• Gives. 20 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1974.
• Himalia. 170 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1904.
• Lisitea. 36 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1938.
• Elara. 86 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1905.
• Day. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• Carpus. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• S / 2003 J 12. 1 kilometer in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Euporia. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• S / 2003 J 3. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• S / 2003 J 18. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Orthosia. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• Euante. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• Harpalice. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• Praxídice. 7 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• Tione. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• S / 2003 J 16. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Yocasta. 5 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• Mnemea. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Hermipe. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• Telxinoe. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• He like. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Ananqué. 28 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1951.
• S / 2003 J 15. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Eurydome. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• Maple. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2002.
• Herse. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Take a walk. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• S / 2003 J 10. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Caldona. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• Isonoé. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• Erinome. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• Calé. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• Aitné. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• Take it easy. 5 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• S / 2003 J 9. 1 kilometer in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Carme. 46 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1938.
• I sponged. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• Megaclite. 5 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• S / 2003 J 5. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• S / 2003 J 19. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• S / 2003 J 23. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Calyx. 5 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2000.
• Pasiphae. 60 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1908.
• Eukélade. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• S / 2003 J 4. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Sinope. 38 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1914.
• Hegemon. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Cilene. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Aedea. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Kore. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Kallichore. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• Autonomous. 4 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2001.
• Calírroe. 9 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 1999.
• S / 2003 J 2. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2003.
• S / 2010 J 1. 1 kilometer in diameter, discovered in 2010.
• S / 2010 J 2. 1 kilometer in diameter, discovered in 2010.
• S / 2011 J 1. 1 kilometer in diameter, discovered in 2011.
• S / 2011 J 2. 1 kilometer in diameter, discovered in 2011.
• S / 2016 J 1. 3 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2016.
• S / 2017 J 1. 2 kilometers in diameter, discovered in 2017.

How far apart are the moons of Jupiter?

Jupiter's rings orbit the planet 122,800 km from the center.

Jupiter's many moons orbit it at different levels. Some of the tiny ones form, together with the dust and gas, the rings of Jupiter, which orbit the planet 122,800 km from the center, with a thickness of ten kilometers. Much closer to the planet, the Galilean satellites meet as a first satellite frontier, followed by a prograde group orbiting in mid-space. All of this, of course, some 594 million kilometers from our planet.

Jupiter's moons that have water

Jupiter's largest moons have long been studied as possible hosts for the humanity, which happens to confirm the existence of Water (usually frozen). The most notable case of this is that of Europe, the sixth moon of Jupiter, geologically active and possessing a subsurface liquid ocean, which makes it the object of numerous explorations and observations. East ocean it remains liquid below the icy surface of the satellite (which is about 174 to 224 degrees below zero) thanks to geothermal activity, and is even a plausible candidate for extraterrestrial life.