Jupiter Holds 1.5x More Oxygen Than Sun, Scientists Find

Scientists just cracked a decades-old mystery about Jupiter that changes everything we thought we knew about how planets form in our solar system.

Researchers at the University of Chicago and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory discovered that Jupiter holds roughly 1.5 times more oxygen than our Sun. For years, scientists couldn't agree on Jupiter's oxygen levels, with some recent studies suggesting it had far less than the Sun.

"This is a long-standing debate in planetary studies," said Jeehyun Yang, the study's lead researcher. The finding matters far beyond Jupiter itself because oxygen is essential for water formation, and understanding where it exists helps scientists identify conditions that might support life on planets beyond our solar system.

The breakthrough came from creating the most comprehensive model of Jupiter's atmosphere ever built. Previous spacecraft like NASA's Galileo couldn't measure deep enough into the planet's thick clouds and violent storms to get accurate readings.

The research team solved this by combining two approaches that were previously kept separate. They merged chemistry models with hydrodynamics, accounting for how water droplets and clouds actually behave instead of making simple assumptions about gas behavior.

NASA's Juno spacecraft, currently orbiting Jupiter, provided crucial data on the upper atmosphere's composition, including ammonia, methane, and carbon monoxide levels. This real-world data helped validate the new model's predictions.

Why This Inspires

This discovery shows how persistence and creative thinking unlock mysteries that seemed unsolvable for decades. By refusing to accept that the pieces didn't fit, these scientists found a new way to look at an old problem.

The team also discovered something unexpected about how slowly gases move through Jupiter's atmosphere. Molecules take weeks to drift through a single atmospheric layer instead of hours, which is 35 to 40 times slower than scientists previously assumed.

This slower movement affects everything from how Jupiter's massive storms form to how heat moves through the planet. It adds another piece to the puzzle of understanding the most powerful weather system in our solar system.

The research doesn't just tell us about Jupiter. It helps scientists understand how all giant planets form and evolve, offering clues about planetary systems across the universe where conditions might support life.