New Storm on Jupiter Hints at Climate Change

www.space.com ^ | 04 May 2006 | Sara Goudarzi

[RightCanuck]

A storm is brewing half a billion miles away and in a rare event, astronomers get to watch it closely.

Jupiter is growing a new red spot and the Hubble Space Telescope is photographing the scene. Backyard astronomers have been following the action, too.

"Red Spot Jr." as it is being called, formed after three white oval-shaped storms—two of which were at least 90 years old—merged between 1998 and 2000.

A similar merger took place centuries ago and formed the bigger and legendary Great Red Spot, a storm twice as big as Earth and almost 300 years old.

Close look

Close inspections of Red Spot Jr., in Hubble images released today, reveal that similar to the Great Red Spot, the more recently developed storm rises above the top of the main cloud deck on Jupiter.

Little is known about how storms form on the giant planet. They are often described as behaving similar to hurricanes on Earth. Some astronomers believe that the spots dredge up material deep below Jupiter's clouds and lift it to where the Sun's ultraviolet light chemically alters it to give it a red hue.

The latest images could provide evidence that Jupiter is in the midst of a global change that can modify temperatures by as much as 10 degrees Fahrenheit on different parts of the globe.

The study was led jointly by Imke de Pater and Philip Marcus of University of California, Berkeley.

"The storm is growing in altitude," de Pater said. "Before when they were just ovals they didn't stick out above the clouds. Now they are rising."

This growth signals a temperature increase in that region, she said.

[Robe]

"...legendary Great Red Spot, a storm twice as big as Earth and almost 300 years old...and first reported by Helen Thomas."

[GeorgefromGeorgia]

Perhaps, remember Arthur Clarke's 2010?

[freddymuldoon]

One thing we can depend on Nature being is dynamic and always in a state of flux and change.

Only enviroMentalist whackos thing its static.

[NormsRevenge]

Cool! "Red Spot Jr." BumP

Hubble images detail the birth of oval BA in 1997-2000. credit: NASA

Surprise! Jupiter Has A New Red Spot 3/3/06 Space.com

Tony Phillips
Science.NASA.gov
posted: 03 March 2006

Backyard astronomers, grab your telescopes. Jupiter is growing a new red spot. The official name of the new storm is "Oval BA," but "Red Jr." might be better. It's about half the size of the famous Great Red Spot and almost exactly the same color.

Oval BA first appeared in the year 2000 when three smaller spots collided and merged. Using Hubble and other telescopes, astronomers watched with great interest. A similar merger that happened centuries ago may have created the original Great Red Spot, a storm twice as wide as our planet and at least 300 years old.

Oval BA has been changing colors in recent months. It was white in November 2005, slowly turned brown in December and then red a few weeks ago.

Why red?

Curiously, no one knows precisely why the Great Red Spot itself is red. A favorite idea is that the storm dredges material from deep beneath Jupiter's cloudtops and lifts it to high altitudes where solar ultraviolet radiation--via some unknown chemical reaction—produces the familiar brick color.

"The Great Red Spot is the most powerful storm on Jupiter, indeed, in the whole solar system," said Glenn Orton, an astronomer at JPL who specializes in studies of storms on Jupiter and other giant planets.

“The top of the storm rises 8 km above surrounding clouds. It takes a powerful storm to lift material so high,” Orton said.

Oval BA may have strengthened enough to do the same. Like the Great Red Spot, Red Jr. may be lifting material above the clouds where solar ultraviolet rays turn "chromophores" (color-changing compounds) red. If so, the deepening red is a sign that the storm is intensifying.

"Some of Jupiter's white ovals have appeared slightly reddish before, for example in late 1999, but not often and not for long," says John Rogers, author of the book "Jupiter: The Giant Planet," which recounts telescopic observations of Jupiter over the last 100 years.

"It will indeed be interesting to see if Oval BA becomes permanently red," Rogers said.

[Let's Roll]

Wal-Mart

[DustyMoment]

Tin foil hat time.

Global Warming is KILLING the Jupiter . . . itarians!!

STOP SUVs on Jupiter NOW!!!

No Fossil Fuels on Jupiter!!

Bush . . . . . what, momma?



:-( I have to go to bed now.

[freddymuldoon]

what does BA in "Oval BA" stand for?

Bad Attitude?
Bare Ass?
Bad Ass?

[raygun]

plink

[KevinDavis]

I blame both...

[MHGinTN]

Could the meteor impacts have anything to do with this storm?

[SunkenCiv]

:')

[Swordmaker]

That would still keep Jupiter about 250 degrees south of freezing.

Actually, there are some levels of Jupiter's atmosphere that are warm enough to support liquid water...

[Swordmaker]

The storm is raging over here as well....


http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1626867/posts

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks!

[ConservativeMind]

"Jupiter In The Balance"

[ConservativeMind]

There is a similar warming on Mars, removing its ice caps bit by bit.

[dead]

(On Jupiter, Manbearpig would weigh almost 1,200 pounds.)

[Candor7]

OMG , our global warming has spread to Jupiter!!!!!!!

Quick, reconvene the Kyoto Protocol Meetings!!!!!!!!

No junk to Jupiter!!!!!!!!

[Candor7]

Looks like a hoser hemmeroid!

What do they expect, its a consequence of placing Uranus on a super cold surface!