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Mission to Jupiter

The time has come for people to move into space. You have been chosen to help with the planning of the first bases on another world - the moons of Jupiter!

Each of Jupiter's four large satellites have different resources - and different problems to overcome. You will have to gather information about Jupiter and its moons to help plan your team's base.

Keep in mind that Jupiter is far from the Sun and from Earth. It is expensive to launch rockets from the Earth to Jupiter, so your bases will have to come up with a way to supply themselves with food, water and power.

Can you think of ways to use the materials found on Jupiter's moons to keep your base alive? I hope so - supply ships from Earth will come once every 13 months!

Good luck!

The Planet

Jupiter

Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system - you could put over 1400 Earths inside of Jupiter if it were hollow. Jupiter is made up of gases and liquids. There is no where to rest your feet since there is no ground! It is a good thing that you can't stand on Jupiter - its gravity is 2.5 times greater than Earth's! That means that if something weighed 100 pounds on Earth, it would weigh 250 pounds on Jupiter. Heavy stuff!

Jupiter is also surrounded by a large radiation belt that tends to fry electronics and people. Some of the satellites are in the radiation belt, so be careful!

The Moons

It is your job to find a way to keep your team alive while living on Jupiter's moons. Each moon has different properties and will present different challenges. Find out some information about the moons to help you plan your bases.

Click once on an underlined name to get more information about that moon.

Citation and linking information

For questions about this page, please contact Carol McKisson.