Drops of Jupiter

Our planet is arguably the most beautiful in the universe, with its billowing clouds and variety of colorful and unique organisms. Have you ever looked up at the moon and marveled at its power to control the fierce waves of the sea, despite being 238,900 miles away? Did you know that only 10% of the ocean’s species are known? The curiosities of our world are unending, but there are even wilder mysteries within other planets in the Milky Way. If you can imagine it, it is likely possible, and I, for one, have held a particular interest for the Gas Giant, Jupiter. With its 75 adoring moons, dainty rings encompassing it, and Train’s famous song “Drops of Jupiter,” how could you not be intrigued?

As you enter the atmosphere of Jupiter, you will wish that you were back home in the amiable Earth. Raging lightning storms ignite throughout the massive globe, ones that are twice as large as earth’s natural disasters and have been storming for centuries. As an earthling, you better educate yourself so that you don’t seem like an ignorant foreigner in space (as my European friends call me:). Jupiter orbits the sun once every twelve earth years, and they celebrate the new “Jovian” Year; you best believe that those parties are radioactive…(literally)! String a tank of oxygen on your spacesuit, too, because that element is unheard of on the Gas Giant. Instead, Jupiter’s atmosphere is like a light cloud, with hydrogen and helium swimming in abundance. These elements make it impossible to land, for it would be like trying to jump on a cloud without falling through.

If you are an ultimate daredevil, you could attempt to skydive in Jupiter, although be sure to wear a G-suit! You would be flying at 110,00 miles per hour, and within seconds you would push past the thick atmosphere to 2,500 miles deep, where it is 6,100 degrees Fahrenheit. Even with your spacesuit, your skin would be melting! Still feeling brave enough to battle Jupiter’s forces?

You’re still reading, so you must be a courageous earthling! Now that you are near the center of Jupiter, its angry gods fight to swallow you into the abyss. The powerful winds slurp radio waves into the center like a black hole, and metallic hydrogen blinds you from every angle. There is no going back now. Jupiter spins faster and faster, completing a full rotation within 9.5 hours. The granite-like orange, brown, and yellow stripes you saw from the rocket are deceiving. In the atmosphere, you discover that they are frigid ammonia that sends chills down your burnt body.

You are in constant misery on this angry planet, but your bravery will soon be rewarded, for in the distance you see bright sparkling gems. As you approach closer, these crystals look like giant diamonds, ones that would make the richest princesses envious. Thousands of diamonds fall from the sky, creating a more magical fantasy than anyone could dream of. Could these really be diamonds, like the small ones we treasure on earth? Lightning storms turn methane into soot, which hardens into chunks of granite and evolves to be splendid gems like from home. These hail stones eventually melt into a liquid sea in the planet’s hot core, creating an enchanting mirror river.

“Perhaps Jupiter isn’t so bad after all…” you say as you snatch a handful of the billion-dollar rain, eager to show it to your fellow adventurers on the spacecraft. Swimming back against the aggressive forces, you smile as you clutch your sweet, shiny, precious…drops of Jupiter.

Works Cited

“Jupiter.” NASA, NASA, 30 Oct. 2021, https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/jupiter/overview/. 

Kim, Gene. “What Would Happen If Humans Tried to Land on Jupiter.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 20 Feb. 2021, https://www.businessinsider.com/what-would-happen-if-humans-tried-landing-on-jupiter-space-2018-2. 

Morgan, James. “’Diamond Rain’ Falls on Saturn and Jupiter.” BBC News, BBC, 14 Oct. 2013, https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-24477667.