Questions tagged [galilean-moons]
Questions about the four largest satellites of Jupiter.
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Why do so many moons in the solar system orbit retrograde?
The solar system as a whole rotates in the prograde direction, presumably to conserve the rotational momentum of the primordial dust cloud it formed from. All the planets orbit (and almost all rotate) ...
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What moons have cleared their orbits?
The Wikipedia article Clearing the Neighborhood lists three numeric parameters that can be calculated for bodies orbiting the Sun as a way to indicate orbital dominance: Stern and Levinson's $\Lambda$,...
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In Jovian and Saturnian moons with subsurface oceans, why doesn't the surface sink?
The surface of some of the Jovian and Saturnian moons for which subsurface oceans have been proposed contains materials denser than water like rock. What keeps the surface from sinking under the ...
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Was Galileo expecting to see so many stars?
Beginner amateur here. I see mentioned many times that Galileo was surprised to see the moons of Jupiter and all that their existence proved, i.e. the Earth not necessarily being the center of ...
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What will happen to the Galilean moons after the Sun dies(assuming no human effects)
Will the system go completely unstable due to all the mass loss the moons and jupiter experienced,will it already have gone unstable before this,or will they keep the resonance,if they keep it,will ...
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Can it be possible to get ice from other moons?
Could it be possible to send out something similar to a probe to one of the moons in the solar system that most likely have water under the cover of the ice and then bring back tests to Earth to see ...
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What is the brightness and size of Jupiter from the Galilean moons, the closest moon, and the farthest moon?
From the Moon, Earth would appear 4 times larger than the Moon seen from Earth, and the magnitude of a "full earth" is around -17.
However, Jupiter from the Galilean moons appear much larger ...
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Why does Callisto only have eclipses every 3 years?
I don’t understand why Jupiter only eclipses Callisto in three year periods separated by three years. I get that the reason Callisto doesn’t always have eclipses is because of the combo of Jupiter’s ...
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Why do Jupiter’s moons have so much water?
Why do Jupiter’s moons have so much water by mass? Did all the bodies in the solar system start out with this much water and the planets closer to the Sun simply lost it to space?
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What would be 1 hour equivalent on these moons of Jupiter and Saturn compared to earth? And their astrobiological implications
Considering the distance from and velocity of Sun, Saturn, Jupiter, thermal energy due to motion other than that adding/combining to velocity, and the individual mass and velocity of the particular ...
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Will tidal heating on Jovian moons ever cease?
Will tidal heating on Jupiter's Galilean moons, specifically Io & Europa ever cease?
I thought not, since they are occasionally in orbital resonance with each other and Ganymede, thus preventing ...
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Does the magnetosphere of Jupiter protect the Galilean Moons from solar flares?
Teasing out a sci-fi story and would like to get things right science-wise. Sun's about to flare (yes, I know we're not great at predicting that yet but near future) and Earth's doomed. Would the ...
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If Jupiter and Saturn were considered stars, which of their moons would qualify as planets by 'clearing the neighbourhood'?
Jupiter has four and Saturn seven spherical satellites. Jupiter's moon Ganymede and Saturn's Titan are larger than Mercury and they're the most massive moons at 0.0248 M♁ (Ganymede) and 0.0225 M♁ (...
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Possible occultation of HIP 99314 and Ganymede
We all are of course looking forward to see the great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn. So I looked up the timeline of close approach in Stellarium and I saw that there might be an occultation with ...
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What would Jupiter look like from a Galilean moon?
If I were on a Galilean moon of Jupiter, like Europa or Ganymede, what would the planet look like? (Let's say I'm on a space station that provides atmosphere to make it slightly less unrealistic.)
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