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PIA24376: Flattening of Brown Dwarf, Jupiter and Saturn (Illustration)
If a planet rotates too fast it will experience bulging around its midsection, as seen in this animated illustration of a brown dwarf, Jupiter, and Saturn.
 Product Size:  3814 x 1856 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  JPL 
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA24376.tif (6.284 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA24376.jpg (305.6 kB)  

Click on the image above to download a moderately sized image in JPEG format (possibly reduced in size from original)

Original Caption Released with Image:

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All spinning objects, from carousels to planets, generate centripetal force. If a planet rotates too fast, that force can pull it apart. Before that happens, the planet will experience "flattening," or bulging around its midsection, as seen in this animated illustration of a brown dwarf, Jupiter, and Saturn.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL-Caltech

Image Addition Date:
2021-04-07