London, August 26 (QNA) - Jupiter's core is not solid as commonly believed, but rather diffuse and scattered, formed through a more gradual accumulation process, unlike previous assumptions, a new British study has revealed.

Published by the UK Royal Astronomical Society, the study indicated that Jupiter did not form from a massive collision at the dawn of the solar system, but rather through a gradual accumulation of heavy and light elements, gathering diverse materials from its surroundings, including rocks, heavy minerals, and light gases, simultaneously during its formation.

It further clarified that instead of heavy materials settling into a separate solid core, they gradually mixed with the gaseous envelope, resulting in what is now known as a "fuzzy core" that extends over a wide area rather than forming a compact solid mass.

The study's findings are closer to reality and more consistent with gravity measurements from the Juno probe, which pointed out that the core's mass is not concentrated in a small solid center but distributed over a large region within the planet.

According to previous conventional views, Jupiter's formation from a massive collision in the early solar system created a dense solid core surrounded by a vast gaseous envelope, which drew in surrounding gases, namely hydrogen and helium, to form this giant planet.

Overall, Jupiter has maintained a special status in astronomy for decades, as the largest and most mysterious planet in the solar system.

Despite space observatories such as Galileo and Juno providing astonishing images and information about its atmosphere and massive storms, the question of the formation of the core of this giant planet remained unanswered. (QNA)