Distance from sun (million km): 779 Revolution: 11,86 years
Diameter (equator): 142.796 km
Period of rotation: 9 h, 55 min

Jupiter is a gas planet surrounded by a system of thin rings and sixteen moons (Galilean Moons). Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system. One of these (Io) is volcanically active. The majority of the Jupiter�s rings are made up of very small particles from meteorite collisions.

Jupiter's atmosphere is thought to be composed of hydrogen, helium, sulfur, and nitrogen. Lightning, more powerful than any that has been experienced on Earth, has been noted in Jupiter's atmosphere. Also in Jupiter's atmosphere are oval phenomenons which are very likely circular storms (e.g. the socalled Great Red Spot, a hurricane-like storm that has been seen in Jupiter's southern hemisphere since Jupiter was first discovered).

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Everything visible on the planet is a cloud. The parallel reddish-brown and white bands, the white ovals, and the large Great Red Spot persist over many years despite the intense turbulence visible in the atmosphere. The most energetic features are the small, bright clouds to the left of the Great Red Spot and in similar locations in the northern half of the planet. These clouds grow and disappear over a few days and generate lightning. Streaks form as clouds are sheared apart by Jupiter's intense jet streams that run parallel to the colored bands. The prominent dark band in the northern half of the planet is the location of Jupiter's fastest jet stream, with eastward winds of 480 kilometers (300 miles) per hour. Jupiter's diameter is eleven times that of Earth, so the smallest storms on this mosaic are comparable in size to the largest hurricanes on Earth.

Unlike Earth, where only water condenses to form clouds, Jupiter's clouds are made of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and water. The updrafts and downdrafts bring different mixtures of these substances up from below, leading to clouds at different heights. The brown and orange colors may be due to trace chemicals dredged up from deeper levels of the atmosphere, or they may be byproducts of chemical reactions driven by ultraviolet light from the Sun. Bluish areas, such as the small features just north and south of the equator, are areas of reduced cloud cover, where one can see deeper.