Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet in our solar system. It's signature stripes and swirls are actually cold, windy clouds of ammonia and water, floating in an atmosphere of hydrogen and helium. The dark orange stripes are called belts, while the lighter bands are called zones, and they flow east and west in opposite directions.

Jupiter has the shortest day in the solar system. One day on Jupiter takes 9.9 hours (the time it takes for Jupiter to rotate or spin around once), and Jupiter makes a complete orbit around the Sun in about 12 Earth years (4,333 Earth days).

Jupiter has four large moons and many smaller moons, a total of about 95 moons that are officially recognized by the International Astronomical Union. The four largest moons – Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto were first observed by the astronomer Galileo Galilei in 1610 using an early version of the telescope. These four moons are known today as the Galilean satellites.

It takes sunlight 43 minutes to travel from the Sun to Jupiter.