Inner moons of Jupiter facts for kids
The inner moons of Jupiter are four small moons that travel very close to Jupiter. These moons are super connected to Jupiter's rings, almost like they help create the ring material or collect it. They orbit Jupiter at distances between 128,000 and 222,000 kilometers from the planet's center.
Meet Jupiter's Inner Moons
The four inner moons are, from closest to farthest from Jupiter:
- Metis
- Adrastea
- Amalthea, which is the biggest of the group. Sometimes, the whole group is even named after Amalthea!
- Thebe
Super-Fast Orbits
Did you know that Metis and Adrastea orbit Jupiter faster than Jupiter spins around once? That's right, they complete a trip around Jupiter in less than one Jovian day (the time it takes for Jupiter to rotate). This is pretty rare! The only other moon we know of that does this is Phobos, which orbits Mars.
These small moons are very important for understanding Jupiter's amazing ring system. They are often called "shepherd moons" because their gravity helps keep the rings in place and can even create gaps or features within them.
Related pages
Images for kids
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Image of Metis taken by the Galileo spacecraft
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Images of Amalthea taken from the Galileo spacecraft
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Image of Thebe taken by the Galileo spacecraft
