Hubble photographs Jupiter's dramatic auroras

endgadget ^ | 6/30/2016 | Mariella Moon

[grimalkin]

The wispy, glowing veil sitting on top of Jupiter in the image above is actually a humongous aurora captured on cam by Hubble. A team of astronomers are using the telescope's ultraviolet instruments to study nature's light shows on the poles of the gas giant. They timed their study to coincide with Juno's arrival on the planet, since one of their goals is to determine how different solar wind conditions and other factors affect Jupiter's auroras. The spacecraft is in charge of measuring various solar wind properties, while they continue capturing images and videos almost every day during the duration of the mission.

Astronomers want to study Jupiter's auroras, because they're quite different from what we're used to. They're big enough to be able to envelope the entirety of our planet, and they're so powerful, they never go away.

Video here.

[Talisker]

Wow, I’ve never seen that before.

[Gator113]

Looks like a drawing of a happy face.

[Mr Apple]

Auroras on Jupiter

Superb thread, thank you.

[Paladin2]

Hubble can focus that close?

[dragnet2]

This might work a bit better for those with smaller screens.

[Kickass Conservative]

Wow, nice Yarmulke. I didn’t know Jupiter was Jewish.

[SunkenCiv]

Oooh, nice! Thanks grimalkin, extra to APoD.

[Flick Lives]

“My God, it’s full of stars!”

[sagar]

[sagar]

[goldbux]

Jewpiter

[MadMax, the Grinning Reaper]

It is a gigantic electric Jewish skull cap called a kippah.
Jupiter is Jewish... who knew..

[VanShuyten]

Nice picture, but Jupiter is a failed sun. I’m for NASA doing a thermonuclear detonation to turn it into a red dwarf star so that all of its moons can hold life.

[Concentrate]

Looks so fake.

[Windflier]

“I’m for NASA doing a thermonuclear detonation to turn it into a red dwarf star so that all of its moons can hold life.”

Now that’s what I call thinking big. Ever consider a career in the asteroid mining industry?

[gigster]

I didn't know Jupiter was Jewish. Done. It should be referred to as: Jew-piter.

[null and void]

Now that’s what I call thinking big. Ever consider a career in the asteroid mining industry?

Red Dwarf Ping!

[ROCKLOBSTER]

“The Genesis Project”

[PIF]

It can also take reaaly good closeups of the moon if they want to ... but then no one wants to reveal one of NASA’s many and constant lies.