Jupiter's Magnetic Personality

Mega Man loves Jupiter's magnetic fields

NASA's spacecraft Juno has drifted for five long years in space heading toward Jupiter, the gas giant that laughed when Pluto was demoted from planethood.  Juno arrives on July 4th, bringing plenty of hot dogs, hamburgers, and fireworks.  In the scientific world, these are known as experiments.  Check the following blurb from NASA's press release:

"In order to look inside the planet, the science team equipped Juno with a pair of magnetometers. The magnetometers, which were designed and built by an in-house team of scientists and engineers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, will allow scientists to map Jupiter's magnetic field with high accuracy and observe variations in the field over time."

Check out a nice recap from space.com, and the video below from NASA on Jupiter's magnetic field.

NASA is sending the Juno spacecraft to Jupiter, to peer beneath its cloudy surface and explore the giant planet's structure and magnetic field. Juno's twin magnetometers, built at Goddard Space Flight Center, will give scientists their first look within Jupiter at the powerful dynamo that drives its magnetic field.