The Reason Jupiter Doesn't Orbit The Sun

When we learn about the solar system as children, we usually learn that the planets all revolve around the sun in their own orbits. Well, if you were one of the many people who were surprised and even a little saddened to learn that Pluto isn't actually a planet, you may want to prepare yourself for yet another shocking space revelation. As reported by Business Insider, Jupiter doesn't really orbit the sun — it's too big! Per Space, Jupiter is so huge that if the mass of every other planet in the solar system combined into one planet, Jupiter would still be 2.5 times as large as the mega-planet. With a radius of 43,440.7 miles, its radius is still only a tenth of that of the sun. It's made up of mostly hydrogen and helium, which means despite its massive size, it's just a fifth as dense as Earth.

Business Insider explained that none of the planets revolving around the sun are doing so in a perfect circle. In fact, the sun and the other planets are both orbiting a combined center of gravity. Here on Earth, the sun is so much larger that this center of gravity is close to the middle of the sun, so it seems like we travel in a circle around the sun itself. This is true of every other planet as well — except the gas giant Jupiter.

Jupiter is too big to really orbit the sun

Just what is Jupiter doing if it's not orbiting the sun along with the rest of the solar system's planets? Because of its size, Jupiter pulls the aforementioned center of gravity away from the middle of the sun to about 30,000 miles above the sun's surface, per Business Insider. That means both the sun and Jupiter are orbiting that point in space. Because the point is drawn away from the sun's center, Jupiter doesn't orbit the sun in addition to this combined center of gravity the way the other, smaller planets do. 

This is just one of many fascinating facts about Jupiter. According to a video from IFL Science, available on YouTube, Jupiter has 67 moons, the largest of which, Ganymede, is the largest moon in the solar system; its diameter is .41 the size of Earth's diameter. Jupiter is also the fastest spinning planet; its "day" lasts just 10 hours. It's even bigger than the sun, which, as we now know, Jupiter does not actually orbit.