{"id":51858,"date":"2023-11-16T14:51:39","date_gmt":"2023-11-16T14:51:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/3e19fe64-6d74-4e6a-b854-73966f54f792"},"modified":"2023-11-16T15:32:37","modified_gmt":"2023-11-16T15:32:37","slug":"jupiters-great-red-spot-facts-and-images","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/rss_feed\/jupiters-great-red-spot-facts-and-images\/","title":{"rendered":"Jupiter’s Great Red Spot facts and images"},"content":{"rendered":"

Facts about Jupiter’s Great Red Spot and images of the centuries-old cyclone. <\/p>

By Lee Dyson\n <\/p>

Published: Thursday, 16 November 2023 at 14:51 PM<\/p>

\n\n

Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is a huge storm in Jupiter’s Southern Hemisphere that’s about 1.3 times as wide as planet Earth.<\/p>

It is a giant oval storm of whirling clouds that travel anticlockwise, with wind speeds reaching up to 680 kilometres per hour: much faster than any of Earth’s storms.<\/p>

The Great Red Spot is Jupiter\u2019s most famous feature, a vast storm that has been observed continuously for almost 200 years and was probably first spotted in 1665.<\/p>

Labelled diagram showing Jupiter’s different belts, bands and zones. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Sitting on the edge of Jupiter’s South Equatorial Belt, the Great Red Spot is confined between a strong westward jet stream to its north and a weaker eastbound one to its south.<\/p>
Winds along the edge can exceed 430km\/h as it spins counter-clockwise (turning once every six Earth days), but the central eye of the storm seems largely stagnant.<\/p>
While most of Jupiter\u2019s darker features are lower- lying than the pale clouds of the zones, the top of the Great Red Spot soars to 8km above its surroundings.<\/p>
The Great Red Spot changes colour and occasionally disappears from view altogether.<\/p>
The source of the Great Red Spot’s colour (which can vary from intense red to a salmony-pink and sometimes disappears completely, leaving just a \u2018hollow\u2019 in the surrounding weather systems to revealthe spot\u2019s presence) is still unknown.<\/p>
However, most scientists believe it is created by chemicals welling up from deep inside the planet and perhaps undergoing reactions on exposure to sunlight.<\/p>
$\"A$
A view of Jupiter, its moon Europa and the Great Red Spot. To the left of the Great Red Spot is Europa’s shadow. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, and B. Holler and J. Stansberry (STScI)<\/figcaption><\/figure>
NASA Juno and the Great Red Spot<\/strong><\/h2>
In 2019, Juno made two low passes over the spot, allowing scientists to probe beneath the surface by looking for slight deflections in the probe\u2019s path caused by concentrations of mass (and higher gravity) in the region.<\/p>
These confirmed that the Great Red Spot probably extends to 300km beneath the cloud tops.<\/p>
Scientists got their best ever look at the storm when NASA’s Juno spacecraft flew over the Great Red Spot<\/a> on 10 July 2017.<\/p>
During the flyover, Juno passed about 9,000 km above the Great Red Spot\u2019s cloud tops.<\/p>
Data collected by NASA’s Juno spacecraft<\/a> has revealed that the Great Red Spot penetrates at least 320km down into Jupiter’s atmosphere. That’s over 30 times deeper than the deepest point of Earth’s oceans.<\/p>
***Want to explore the Great Red Spot for yourself? Read our guide on*** ***how to observe Jupiter through a telescope<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>***
$\"\"$
A view of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot captured by the Juno spacecraft and processed by citizen scientist Kevin M Gill. Image data: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS. Image processing by Kevin M. Gill, \u00a9 CC BY<\/figcaption><\/figure>
How old is the Great Red Spot?<\/strong><\/h2>
The Great Red Spot is known to have been raging for centuries, having been observed by astronomers for over 300 years.<\/p>
Astronomers Robert Hooke and Giovanni Cassini are known to have observed and recorded a feature located on Jupiter at the Great Red Spot’s latitude, suggesting they may have also observed the huge cyclone.<\/p>
But the first confirmed sighting of the Great Red Spot is thought to have been by German amateur astronomer Samuel Heinrich Schwabe in 1831.<\/p>
$\"\"$
Revealing the detailed beauty of Jupiter\u2019s clouds, this image shows the intense colour palette of the Great Red Spot and is proof that the storm \u2013 which has raged for over 150 years \u2013 is shrinking. Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center) and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)<\/figcaption><\/figure>
How big is the Great Red Spot?<\/strong><\/h2>
Observations of the Great Red Spot have shown that it is shrinking over time.<\/p>
The Voyager<\/a> spacecraft recorded the width of the Great Red Spot as around 25,000km in 1979 – about twice the diameter of Earth – and it’s now thought to have shrunk to 16,000km, as of April 2017.<\/p>
Data from ground-based telescopes reveals that the Great Red Spot has reduced in width by a third and height by one eighth since the time of the Voyagers’ fly-by.<\/p>
$\"\"$
An image of Jupiter and its Great Red Spot, captured during the Voyager mission. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech<\/figcaption><\/figure>
**Pictures of the Great Red Spot<\/strong><\/h2>**There are plenty of amazing images of the Great Red Spot captured by the Juno spacecraft and the Hubble Space Telescope<\/a> over the years.<\/p>
Below is a selection of images of the Jovian storm captured by astrophotographers and BBC Sky at Night Magazine readers.<\/p>
For advice on capturing images of Jupiter yourself, read our guide on how to photograph the planets<\/a>.<\/p>
And don’t forget to send us your images<\/a> or share them with us via Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>
$\"An$
An image of Jupiter captured in ultraviolet light by the Hubble Space Telescope, released on 2 November 2023. Credit: NASA, ESA, and M. Wong (University of California – Berkeley); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA\/Catholic University of America)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter imaged in August 2022, showing its famous Great Red Spot. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"A$
A view of Jupiter, the biggest planet in our Solar System, captured by the Cassini spacecraft. Credit: Source: NASA\/JPL\/Space Science Institute<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Three$
Three months on JupiterHubble Space Telescope, 23 March 2023<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter,$
Jupiter, James Webb Space Telescope, July 2022. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, and B. Holler and J. Stansberry (STScI)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"A$
A view of the Great Red Spot and a massive storm called Oval BA in Jupiter’s atmosphere, as seen by the Juno spacecraft. Credit: Enhanced Image by Gerald Eichst\u00e4dt and Sean Doran (CC BY-NC-SA) based on images provided Courtesy of NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter's$
Jupiter’s belts and zones are what give the gas giant its stripy appearance. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS\/Kevin M. Gill<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter in a new light: infrared, visible and ultravioletGEMINI NORTH, HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE, 11 MAY 2021CREDIT: International Gemini Observatory\/NOIRLab\/NSF\/AURA\/NASA\/ESA, M.H. Wong and I. de Pater (UC Berkeley) et al.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter in ultraviolet\/visible\/near-infrared light Hubble Space Telescope, 25 August 2020. Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M. H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley) and the OPAL team.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"A$
A view of Jupiter and its moon Europa captured on 25 August 2020 by the Hubble Space Telescope. Credit:NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M. H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley) and the OPAL team.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Through$
Through a blue filter, Jupiter\u2019s Great Red Spot appears much more distinct. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"An$
An image of Jupiter and its Great Red Spot, captured during the Voyager mission. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Clyde\u2019s$
Clyde\u2019s Spot on Jupiter Juno spacecraft (processed by Kevin M Gill), 1 July 2020. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS, Kevin M. Gill \u00a9\u00a0CC BY<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"A$
A view of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot captured by the Juno spacecraft and processed by citizen scientist Kevin M Gill. Image data: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSSImage processing by Kevin M. Gill, \u00a9 CC BY<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"\"$
This new image from the largest planet in the Solar System, Jupiter, was made during the Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) programme. The images from this programme make it possible to determine the speeds of Jupiter\u2019s winds, to identify different phenomena in its atmosphere and to track changes in its most famous features. The map shown was observed on 19 January 2015, from 2:00 UT to 12:30 UT.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter Hubble Space Telescope, 27 June 2019<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter Rouzbeh Bidshahri, Dubai, 25 July 2019. Equipment: ZWO ASI 290 mono camera, Celestron C14 Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope, Losmandy Titan mount.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter,$
Jupiter, Rouzbeh Bidshahri, Dubai, 25 July 2019Equipment: ZWO ASI290 mono camera, Celestron C14 Schmidt-Cassegrain, Losmandy Titan mount<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Animation$
The Great Red Spot is an enormous storm that has been raging for centuries. – NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS\/Gerald Eichstadt\/Justin Cowart<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"\"$
Jupiter is more massive than all of the other solar-system planets combined. – NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Revealing$
Revealing the detailed beauty of Jupiter\u2019s clouds, this image shows the intense colour palette of the Great Red Spot and is proof that the storm \u2013 which has raged for over 150 years \u2013 is shrinking. Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center) and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter's$
Jupiter’s moon Ganymede can just be seen poking out from behind the giant planet. Credit: NASA\/ESA\/E. Karkoschka (University of Arizona)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Labelled diagram showing Jupiter’s different belts, bands and zones. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Sitting on the edge of Jupiter’s South Equatorial Belt, the Great Red Spot is confined between a strong westward jet stream to its north and a weaker eastbound one to its south.<\/p>
Winds along the edge can exceed 430km\/h as it spins counter-clockwise (turning once every six Earth days), but the central eye of the storm seems largely stagnant.<\/p>
While most of Jupiter\u2019s darker features are lower- lying than the pale clouds of the zones, the top of the Great Red Spot soars to 8km above its surroundings.<\/p>
The Great Red Spot changes colour and occasionally disappears from view altogether.<\/p>
The source of the Great Red Spot’s colour (which can vary from intense red to a salmony-pink and sometimes disappears completely, leaving just a \u2018hollow\u2019 in the surrounding weather systems to revealthe spot\u2019s presence) is still unknown.<\/p>
However, most scientists believe it is created by chemicals welling up from deep inside the planet and perhaps undergoing reactions on exposure to sunlight.<\/p>
$\"A$
A view of Jupiter, its moon Europa and the Great Red Spot. To the left of the Great Red Spot is Europa’s shadow. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, and B. Holler and J. Stansberry (STScI)<\/figcaption><\/figure>
NASA Juno and the Great Red Spot<\/strong><\/h2>
In 2019, Juno made two low passes over the spot, allowing scientists to probe beneath the surface by looking for slight deflections in the probe\u2019s path caused by concentrations of mass (and higher gravity) in the region.<\/p>
These confirmed that the Great Red Spot probably extends to 300km beneath the cloud tops.<\/p>
Scientists got their best ever look at the storm when NASA’s Juno spacecraft flew over the Great Red Spot<\/a> on 10 July 2017.<\/p>
During the flyover, Juno passed about 9,000 km above the Great Red Spot\u2019s cloud tops.<\/p>
Data collected by NASA’s Juno spacecraft<\/a> has revealed that the Great Red Spot penetrates at least 320km down into Jupiter’s atmosphere. That’s over 30 times deeper than the deepest point of Earth’s oceans.<\/p>
***Want to explore the Great Red Spot for yourself? Read our guide on*** ***how to observe Jupiter through a telescope<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>***
$\"\"$
A view of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot captured by the Juno spacecraft and processed by citizen scientist Kevin M Gill. Image data: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS. Image processing by Kevin M. Gill, \u00a9 CC BY<\/figcaption><\/figure>
How old is the Great Red Spot?<\/strong><\/h2>
The Great Red Spot is known to have been raging for centuries, having been observed by astronomers for over 300 years.<\/p>
Astronomers Robert Hooke and Giovanni Cassini are known to have observed and recorded a feature located on Jupiter at the Great Red Spot’s latitude, suggesting they may have also observed the huge cyclone.<\/p>
But the first confirmed sighting of the Great Red Spot is thought to have been by German amateur astronomer Samuel Heinrich Schwabe in 1831.<\/p>
$\"\"$
Revealing the detailed beauty of Jupiter\u2019s clouds, this image shows the intense colour palette of the Great Red Spot and is proof that the storm \u2013 which has raged for over 150 years \u2013 is shrinking. Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center) and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)<\/figcaption><\/figure>
How big is the Great Red Spot?<\/strong><\/h2>
Observations of the Great Red Spot have shown that it is shrinking over time.<\/p>
The Voyager<\/a> spacecraft recorded the width of the Great Red Spot as around 25,000km in 1979 – about twice the diameter of Earth – and it’s now thought to have shrunk to 16,000km, as of April 2017.<\/p>
Data from ground-based telescopes reveals that the Great Red Spot has reduced in width by a third and height by one eighth since the time of the Voyagers’ fly-by.<\/p>
$\"\"$
An image of Jupiter and its Great Red Spot, captured during the Voyager mission. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech<\/figcaption><\/figure>
**Pictures of the Great Red Spot<\/strong><\/h2>**There are plenty of amazing images of the Great Red Spot captured by the Juno spacecraft and the Hubble Space Telescope<\/a> over the years.<\/p>
Below is a selection of images of the Jovian storm captured by astrophotographers and BBC Sky at Night Magazine readers.<\/p>
For advice on capturing images of Jupiter yourself, read our guide on how to photograph the planets<\/a>.<\/p>
And don’t forget to send us your images<\/a> or share them with us via Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>
$\"An$
An image of Jupiter captured in ultraviolet light by the Hubble Space Telescope, released on 2 November 2023. Credit: NASA, ESA, and M. Wong (University of California – Berkeley); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA\/Catholic University of America)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter imaged in August 2022, showing its famous Great Red Spot. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"A$
A view of Jupiter, the biggest planet in our Solar System, captured by the Cassini spacecraft. Credit: Source: NASA\/JPL\/Space Science Institute<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Three$
Three months on JupiterHubble Space Telescope, 23 March 2023<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter,$
Jupiter, James Webb Space Telescope, July 2022. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, and B. Holler and J. Stansberry (STScI)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"A$
A view of the Great Red Spot and a massive storm called Oval BA in Jupiter’s atmosphere, as seen by the Juno spacecraft. Credit: Enhanced Image by Gerald Eichst\u00e4dt and Sean Doran (CC BY-NC-SA) based on images provided Courtesy of NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter's$
Jupiter’s belts and zones are what give the gas giant its stripy appearance. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS\/Kevin M. Gill<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter in a new light: infrared, visible and ultravioletGEMINI NORTH, HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE, 11 MAY 2021CREDIT: International Gemini Observatory\/NOIRLab\/NSF\/AURA\/NASA\/ESA, M.H. Wong and I. de Pater (UC Berkeley) et al.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter in ultraviolet\/visible\/near-infrared light Hubble Space Telescope, 25 August 2020. Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M. H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley) and the OPAL team.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"A$
A view of Jupiter and its moon Europa captured on 25 August 2020 by the Hubble Space Telescope. Credit:NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M. H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley) and the OPAL team.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Through$
Through a blue filter, Jupiter\u2019s Great Red Spot appears much more distinct. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"An$
An image of Jupiter and its Great Red Spot, captured during the Voyager mission. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Clyde\u2019s$
Clyde\u2019s Spot on Jupiter Juno spacecraft (processed by Kevin M Gill), 1 July 2020. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS, Kevin M. Gill \u00a9\u00a0CC BY<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"A$
A view of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot captured by the Juno spacecraft and processed by citizen scientist Kevin M Gill. Image data: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSSImage processing by Kevin M. Gill, \u00a9 CC BY<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"\"$
This new image from the largest planet in the Solar System, Jupiter, was made during the Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) programme. The images from this programme make it possible to determine the speeds of Jupiter\u2019s winds, to identify different phenomena in its atmosphere and to track changes in its most famous features. The map shown was observed on 19 January 2015, from 2:00 UT to 12:30 UT.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter Hubble Space Telescope, 27 June 2019<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter$
Jupiter Rouzbeh Bidshahri, Dubai, 25 July 2019. Equipment: ZWO ASI 290 mono camera, Celestron C14 Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope, Losmandy Titan mount.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter,$
Jupiter, Rouzbeh Bidshahri, Dubai, 25 July 2019Equipment: ZWO ASI290 mono camera, Celestron C14 Schmidt-Cassegrain, Losmandy Titan mount<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Animation$
The Great Red Spot is an enormous storm that has been raging for centuries. – NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SwRI\/MSSS\/Gerald Eichstadt\/Justin Cowart<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"\"$
Jupiter is more massive than all of the other solar-system planets combined. – NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center), and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Revealing$
Revealing the detailed beauty of Jupiter\u2019s clouds, this image shows the intense colour palette of the Great Red Spot and is proof that the storm \u2013 which has raged for over 150 years \u2013 is shrinking. Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center) and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
$\"Jupiter's$
Jupiter’s moon Ganymede can just be seen poking out from behind the giant planet. Credit: NASA\/ESA\/E. Karkoschka (University of Arizona)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div><\/div>