Picturing the Poles
Jupiter is beyond the asteroid belt. It is the largest planet in the solar system. A U.S. spacecraft named Juno orbits Jupiter. This planet spins faster than any of the others.
Its spin creates gas belts that run from west to east. Juno took pictures of Jupiter’s north and south poles. There are no gas belts there. Instead, the poles have storms.
This drawing shows how Juno looks as it orbits Jupiter.
Farther and Further
In 2006, NASA launched a spacecraft named New Horizons from Jupiter. Nine years later, it flew past Pluto.
New Horizons is still going. It flew past the farthest object ever visited, Arrokoth. Arrokoth is made of two objects stuck together. It looks like a snowman in space!
This drawing shows Arrokoth.
This spacecraft, Voyager 1, has traveled far.
Some spacecraft have traveled even farther. Why do we explore space? Because we are part of it. We want to know more about where we live.