Jupiter is the giant of the solar system: about two and a half times as massive as all the other planets combined, striped with clouds and marked by a storm bigger than Earth. Pick a question below for a short answer, then follow the link to the full guide.
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Quick Facts
| Fact | Jupiter |
|---|---|
| Average distance from the Sun | About 778.5 million km (about 5.2 AU) |
| Distance from Earth | About 588.5 to 968.5 million km, depending on orbits |
| Equatorial diameter (cloud tops) | 142,984 km, about 11.2 times Earth’s |
| Mass | About 318 Earths |
| Density | 1,326 kg/m³ (Earth: 5,514) |
| Effective gravity at the equator (1-bar level, includes spin) | 23.1 m/s², about 2.4 times Earth’s |
| Length of day | About 9.9 hours, the shortest of any planet |
| Length of year | About 11.9 Earth years |
| Mean temperature (cloud tops) | About −110 °C |
| Known moons | 115 (JPL discovery table, as of November 2026) |
| Rings | Yes, faint rings of dark dust |
What Do You Want to Know?
How big is Jupiter?
About 11 Earths across and 318 Earths in mass, about 2.5 times the mass of all the other planets put together (DCI calculation from NASA’s fact sheet). What Is the Biggest Planet?
How far away is Jupiter?
About 778.5 million km from the Sun on average. From Earth, it ranges from about 588.5 to 968.5 million km. How Far Is Jupiter?
How long does it take to get to Jupiter?
Past missions took from about 13 months (New Horizons, flying past) to about 6 years (Galileo, which looped past Venus and Earth before going into orbit). How Far Is Jupiter?
What is Jupiter made of?
Mostly hydrogen and helium, about 89.8% and 10.2% of its atmosphere. There’s no solid surface; deep inside sits a large, fuzzy core. What Is Jupiter Made Of?
How long is a day on Jupiter?
About 9.9 hours, the shortest day of any planet. What Is Jupiter Made Of?
What color is Jupiter, and what is the Great Red Spot?
Bands of tan, brown, white and orange. The Great Red Spot is a giant storm, about 14,000 km long in 2024, still slightly wider than Earth. What Color Is Jupiter?
Is the Great Red Spot shrinking?
Yes. It was measured at about 25,500 miles long in the late 1800s and has been getting smaller and rounder ever since. What Color Is Jupiter?
Does Jupiter have rings?
Yes: four faint parts made of dark dust knocked off small moons, confirmed by Voyager 1 in 1979. Does Jupiter Have Rings?
How many moons does Jupiter have?
115 known moons as of November 2026, led by the four big ones Galileo found in 1610: Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. How Many Moons Does Jupiter Have? · Does Europa Have an Ocean? · Which Planet Has the Most Moons?
What’s at Jupiter’s poles?
Clusters of giant cyclones that NASA’s Juno spacecraft revealed, very different from Saturn’s single six-sided jet stream. Jupiter’s Polar Cyclones vs. Saturn’s Hexagon
Jupiter in Real Images
Every picture here is a real spacecraft or telescope image, not an illustration.
Jupiter vs. Saturn
| Fact | Jupiter | Saturn |
|---|---|---|
| Avg. distance from Sun | 5.2 AU | 9.6 AU |
| Equatorial diameter | 142,984 km | 120,536 km |
| Mass | About 318 Earths | About 95 Earths |
| Density | 1,326 kg/m³ | 687 kg/m³ |
| Day | About 9.9 h | About 10.7 h |
| Year | About 11.9 years | About 29.4 years |
| Mean temp. (cloud tops) | About −110 °C | About −140 °C |
| Known moons (Nov 2026) | 115 | 293 |
For the full Saturn story, visit our Saturn hub.
Keep Exploring
- Every planet, one stop at a time, with a side-by-side comparison: Solar System Explorer and Compare the Planets
- Terms like AU, albedo and opposition, in plain English: Space Glossary
- How a claim earns its label: How We Know
How This Page Was Checked
The Quick Facts come from the NASA Planetary Fact Sheet (last updated March 18, 2025); Earth comparisons and light-travel times are DCI calculations from it. Giant-planet sizes and temperatures are cloud-top values, because Jupiter has no solid surface. Moon counts are from the JPL discovery table as of November 2026, matching our moon guides, and will be updated as new moons are confirmed. Each short answer summarizes a full DCI guide that carries its own primary sources. Every image here is a real spacecraft or telescope image, credited as its source requires. Checked November 2026.