Fact Sheet
Noisy Neighbor
Jupiter, the largest planet in the solar system, generates a powerful magnetic field. It envelopes the planet in a magnetic "bubble," called the magnetosphere, which is shown in this image from the Cassini spacecraft. An artist has added the lines to show how the lines of magnetic force permeate the field. Electrically charged particles trapped in the field emit radio waves. Astronomers discovered Jupiter's radio waves 50 years ago this week -- the first detection of radio waves from any planet. [Credit: NASA/JPL/JHU-APL]
|