Why do gas giants like Jupiter not eventually turn into solid material?

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Why do gas giants like Jupiter not eventually turn into solid material?

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Anonymous 0 Comments

Why would they? Those planets have been in basically a steady-state, with no major changes to their structure or composition, for many billions of years. What force would cause them to solidify?

Anonymous 0 Comments

Many scientists theorize the core of Jupiter is solid, the pressure would certainly be high enough. As for the upper atmosphere, much like on Earth, the pressure and gravity have reached an equilibrium and so the gases stay gaseous, at a constant pressure and altitude.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Given enough time, they will. But that’s on timescales that make the current age of the universe seem like the blink of an eye.

In the shorter term, the answer is because they’re made mostly of hydrogen and helium. Those two elements are extremely difficult to freeze solid. Even the faint light of the distant sun will keep them gaseous. They also retain heat from the formation of the planet itself. Gas giant planets are extremely hot in their lower atmospheres.