On April 7, when Jupiter was at its closest point to the Earth for the year, our dazzling “evening star” was shining at a brilliant –2.46 magnitude. Two months later, Jupiter has faded too –2.18 magnitude, but it’s still a bright beacon in the night sky. So why is Jupiter still so bright?
The brightness of a planet depends on its distance, its size, how brightly the sun shines on it and how the planet reflects sunlight. Jupiter has excellent marks on two of these points. Its size and brightly reflective clouds make it brilliant. Those clouds are mostly white, pale shades of tan and pastel orange. At 88,846 miles in diameter, Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. The Jovian giant is 11 times as wide as Earth, with about 121 times more surface area.
To find Jupiter this week, step outside around 10:30 p.m. and face southwest. The king of the planets can be spotted about 40 degrees above the horizon in Virgo.
The brightness of a planet depends on its distance, its size, how brightly the sun shines on it and how the planet reflects sunlight. Jupiter has excellent marks on two of these points. Its size and brightly reflective clouds make it brilliant. Those clouds are mostly white, pale shades of tan and pastel orange. At 88,846 miles in diameter, Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. The Jovian giant is 11 times as wide as Earth, with about 121 times more surface area.
To find Jupiter this week, step outside around 10:30 p.m. and face southwest. The king of the planets can be spotted about 40 degrees above the horizon in Virgo.