Re: Welcome, new planets!

Tim McDaniel <tmcd@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Karl Johanson <karljohanson@xxxxxxx> wrote:
Jupiter emits more energy than it recieves from the sun.

So does every other planet in the solar system, if for no other
reason than radioactive decay and impacts from meteors.

But Jupiter emits *three times* as much energy as it gets from the
Sun. It's *hot* under those cloud tops, and that wouldn't change
even if the Sun went out.

It is possible for a planet to emit less energy than it receives from
the Sun, though I doubt it happens. When atmosphere is gradually lost
to space, that results in a slight temporary cooling. Comets almost
certainly emit less energy than they receive from the Sun.
--
Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/
Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me.
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