Unraveling the mysteries of Jupiter

Today’s Video of the Day from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center features a brand new look at Jupiter provided by the Hubble Space Telescope.

The photograph reveals the Great Red Spot, which represents a mysterious, ages-old storm. The changing colors seen in the clouds swirling over the planet give scientists important information about Jupiter’s atmosphere.

The image was captured on June 27, 2019 by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3. NASA’s Juno spacecraft is scheduled to arrive at the giant planet on Monday (July 4), to do more investigations of this giant planet and to try to solve some of the following mysteries. Scott Bolton, principal investigator of Juno at the Southwest Research Institute in Texas, told Space.com what some of the biggest outstanding questions are.

One theory (proposed at the time by Galileo scientists) is that Jupiter’s heavy elements come from the numerous comets, asteroids and other small bodies that it has pulled in and “consumed” when they get too close. But scientists aren’t quite sure. One of Juno’s aims will be to measure these elements at higher precision than previous missions. Jupiter’s shrinking Great Red Spot is shown in Hubble Space Telescope images from 1995, 2009 and 2014 (insets). The global picture is from 2004. (Image credit: NASA, ESA, and A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center)) Scott Bolton, principal investigator of Juno at the Southwest Research Institute in Texas, told Space.com what some of the biggest outstanding questions are. 

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By Chrissy Sexton, Earth.com Staff Writer

Video Credit: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center