New Juno measurements shrink Jupiter and refine its shape

NASA’s Juno mission refines Jupiter’s size and shape, finding a polar radius of about 66,842 km (roughly 12 km smaller) and an equatorial radius of about 71,488 km (roughly 4 km smaller) than older measurements. By tracking how Juno’s radio signals bend through the atmosphere and accounting for winds, scientists produced more accurate dimensions, improving models of Jupiter’s interior and gas giants overall; as co-author Yohai Kaspi notes, “Textbooks will need to be updated.”