Celestia Forums

Are the moons of Jupiter suppose to cast shadows on Jupiter when they eclipse it.

Trev

Did you remember to turn on "Render" "View Options" "Eclipse Shadows" ?

Here's what Celestia shows for what could be seen from the Earth of the eclipse by Io that happens tomorrow:

(this links to a much larger image)

And here's a Cel:// URL to take you to this viewpoint:
cel://Follow/Sol:Earth/2003-02-08T04:48:50.99338?x=GDa3m4Y0zOixDA&y=FXjMmwp/&z=pV1KTzI3ncP1/////////w&ow=0.932562&ox=-0.013376&oy=-0.360509&oz=-0.013511&track=Sol:Jupiter&select=Sol:Jupiter&fov=0.014626&ts=0.000000<d=0&rf=3991&lm=49152

i don't know what the original poster ment to ask, but my question is: do jovian moons really cast so sharp shadows on jupiter? i mean, jupiter has no solid surface, and i thought those clouds or whatever are not that "definit" or flat or what. are they?

The clouds are dense, and effectively form a smooth surface when compared to the dimensions of the moon shadows - so, yes, the moon shadows do appear quite sharp.

Grant

And with a nice telescope you can see the shadows, like I did two days ago for the first time...