How do gas giants work?

Question

I mean, how do we get a certain quantity of gas matter to become an actual planet? Is there anything inside it? How is, say, Jupiter’s core?

In: Planetary Science

Answer 1

the important difference between a gas giant and a rock/ice planet is normally mass. Gas giants are large enough to retain elemental hydrogen in their atmospheres(an escape velocity many times large the ambient thermal speed helps). Hydrogen, and to a lesser extent helium, is so overwhelmingly abundant that once that mass is reached it’s almost enivitable that the planet will be mostly hydrogen. The elements that make up earth will probably be there in Jupiter’s core along with things like hydrogen and helium that would be gaseous on earth but Jupiter’s huge atmosphere causes enough pressure to liquify or solidify them.