Jupiter - Current Affairs Questions and Answers

1)   NASA’s spacecraft has begun orbiting Jupiter, a key triumph for the USD 1.1 billion mission to uncover origins of the largest planet in the solar system?

a. Juno
b. Cassini
c. MOM
d. None of the above
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: Juno

Explanation:
NASA’s unmanned Juno spacecraft on 3rd July 2016 has begun orbiting Jupiter, a key victory for the USD 1.1 billion mission to uncover the origins of the biggest planet in the solar system

  • NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California also issued a welcome message from the mission control
  • Solar observatory which has travelled 1.7 billion miles (2.7 billion km) since it launched 5 years ago from Cape Canaveral, Florida entered the aimed for orbit around Jupiter at 11:53 pm
  • Juno should circle the planet 37 times before making a death plunge in 2018 to prevent the spacecraft from damaging icy moons of Jupiter
  • Juno will not be the first spacecraft to circle Jupiter as NASA indicates the orbit will bring it closer than predecessor Galileo launched in 1989.
  • Galileo found evidence of subsurface saltwater on Jupiter’s moons Europa, Ganymede and Callisto before taking the final plunge into Jupiter in 2003
2)   Scientists have discovered 5 new Jupiter like planets close to their host stars. What are they named?

a. WASP-119 b, WASP-124 b, WASP-126 b, WASP-129 b and WASP—133 b
b. WAST-119 a, WAST-124 a, WAST-126 a, WAST-129 a and WAST—133 a
c. WASK-119 d, WASK-124 d, WASK-126 d, WASK-129 d and WASK—133 d
d. WASR-119 x, WASR-124 x, WASR-126 x, WASR-129 x and WASR—133 x
Answer  Explanation 

ANSWER: WASP-119 b, WASP-124 b, WASP-126 b, WASP-129 b and WASP—133 b

Explanation:
Scientists have discovered 5 new Jupiter like planets similar in features to the biggest planet in our solar system and very close to host stars. Researchers used the WASP South or Wide Angle Search for Planets-South instrument an array of 8 cameras observing selected regions of the southern sky to show 5 stars with planet like transits in their light curve. The 5 planets have been named WASP-119 b, WASP-124 b, WASP-126 b, WASP-129 b and WASP—133 b.The orbital periods of the planets vary from 2.17 to 5.75 days, and their masses range from 0.3 to 1.2 the mass of Jupiter, with radii between one to 1.5 Jupiter radius, researchers said.

Other Findings

  • WASP-119 b (which has a mass of 1.2 of the mass of Jupiter, and an orbital period of 2.5 days) is a typical hot Jupiter.
  • Its host star has a same type of mass like Sun’s but appears to be much older based on its effective temperature and density.
  • WASP-124 b, less larger than Jupiter (0.6 times Jupiter masses), has orbital period of 3.4 days and a much younger parent star.
  • WASP-126 b is the smallest-mass world found by researchers.
  • Its low surface gravity and a bright host star make the planet a target for transmission spectroscopy.
  • WASP-129 b, similar in size to Jupiter, has the longest orbital period. Its surface gravity is also high compared to other known ‘hot Jupiters’, researchers said.
  • WASP-133 b has the shortest orbital period of the exoplanets detected by researchers.

Related Content

▲