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The four outer planets, also called giant planets or Jovian planets - Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune - are all largely made up of gases and liquids, and have no solid surface. However, this doesn't mean that they're just four giant clouds! All four planets have a complicated internal structure, and while they have no solid surface, the actual gas parts don't extend very far into the planets.

Jupiter and Saturn, the gas giants, are made up mostly of hydrogen and helium - gases. They have thick, gaseous atmospheres, but further down the pressure rises and the hydrogen and helium are compressed into a liquid. Even further down, hydrogen molecules are broken up into a liquid of hydrogen atoms, which behaves as a metal - swirling currents within this "liquid metallic hydrogen" are presumably responsible for the magnetic fields around Jupiter and Saturn. Perhaps even further down hydrogen and helium could be compressed into solids! The two planets are thought to have cores made up of metal, rock and "ices" (water, methane, ammonia etc. - things that are frozen into ice at the temperatures in outer space. Inside the gas giants, things are very hot, but the immense pressures keep everything solid.)

Uranus and Neptune also have no solid surface, and have thick atmospheres of hydrogen and helium gas, with traces of other things like methane and ammonia (methane in the atmospheres of Uranus and Neptune absorbs red light and is responsible for the two planets' blue-green colours.) However, the interiors of the two planets are largely composed of ices (the temperatures are high, but the pressures are low, allowing these "ices" to be liquid.) For this reason Uranus and Neptune are often called "ice giants," although they are made up of liquid and gas rather than solid ice. Both ice giants probably have a core of molten rock and metal, like Jupiter and Saturn.

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