Jupiter winds can reach speeds of up to 900 miles per hour (1448 kilometers per hour). That’s three times bigger than the fastest tornadoes on Earth.
(Photo: Lynette Cook / NASA / Getty Images)
IN SPACE – JUNE 13: This artist’s conceptual painting published June 13, 2002, depicts a giant Jupiter planet orbiting the star, 55 Cancri, about 41 light-years from Earth. A possible moon around the planet has been shown because such branches are thought to be common around this type of planet, but no moon has been found.
The massive storm in Jupiter’s famous Great Red Spot is famous, but scientists have now measured winds near the poles of the gas giant that cause the storm to appear as wind in comparison.
The molecules left by the Shoemaker-Levy comet 9, which hit Jupiter in 1994, were studied in a new study by astronomers from the Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Bordeaux.
Wind speeds at this altitude were expected to be much lower. However, it was not expected to find such a strong force in the center of the planet’s consciousness.
Jupiter Storms: How fast is the wind?
The scientists were able to find out from these molecules that the planet’s winds would be higher than 900 mph, with storms as large as the Earth and as high as 560 miles (900 kilometers).
The winds are found just below the clear auroras seen at the poles in the planet’s stratosphere. Astronauts call them “strong jets” because they are twice as fast as the Great Red Spot and three times as powerful as the most powerful tornadoes on Earth.
Storms on Earth typically cover an area of up to three miles (4.8 km) and can reach altitudes of up to 250 miles per hour (402kph).
The study’s author, Dr. Thibault Cavalié, said the appearance of hard jets was the most striking finding, with speeds of up to 400 meters per second, located under the aurorae near the poles.
Bilal Benmahi, co-author of the study, said these jets could be a massive tornado with a diameter of up to four times higher than Earth and a height of up to 900 kilometers.
According to Benmahi, a tornado of this size will be a one-of-a-kind meteorological beast in our Solar System.
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The research was published in a paper entitled “The first direct measurement of auroral and equatorial jets in the Jupiter stratosphere. “
With no clouds in this area of the atmosphere, obtaining an accurate wind reading has been a problem over the years.
Therefore, scientists in Chile used the Atacama Large Millimeter / Submillimeter Array (ALMA) to map the speed of molecules released into the Jovian stratosphere. CNet said scientists were able to detect the strong jets in the atmosphere by observing hydrogen cyanide molecules in particular.
What did the scientists decide?
According to the astronauts, future flights to Jupiter – such as the planned JUICE flight in Europe – are expected to allow for more in-depth follow-up studies.
This seems to be the last hurdle for interplanetary breeders.
Last year, images from NASA and the European Space Agency’s Hubble telescope revealed a major storm on Jupiter.
NASA said the video showed a clear, white, stretched-out storm moving at 560 kilometers per hour (374mph).
Although storms are common in that area, researchers believe this one was unique because it may have turned into a permanent feature.
Researchers believe that this may be the beginning of a longer-lasting northern hemisphere location, which tends to compete with the true Red Spot living in the southern hemisphere, read the ESA and NASA statement.
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