Giant impact disrupted Jupiter’s core
14 Aug 2019, 17:03 UTC
Astrobiology Center, Japan
New interior models of Jupiter based on data gathered by NASA’s Juno mission suggested that the giant gas planet might not have a small compact core but rather a diluted, “fuzzy” one. Now, an international team with researchers of the University of Zürich and the NCCR PlanetS has found an explanation for this surprising Juno result. A giant impact occurring shortly after Jupiter’s formation may have disrupted and diluted its original compact core.
