Scientists could have figured out why Jupiter’s stripes alter colour

1 of Jupiter’s greatest mysteries was that the streaks visible on its surface normally shifted and changed. Now, scientists think they have figured out why.

Image of Jupiter, with Ganymede’s shadow on it, taken by NASA’s Juno mission/ (Image credit: NASA) Listen to this post Your browser does not assistance the audio element.

Most pictures of Jupiter prominently function numerous of the gas giant’s characteristic streaks. Aside from the giant red dot, one particular of the most fascinating functions of the planet’s surface is that these stripes in some cases shift and alter, anything scientists have so far been unable to clarify.

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But now, thanks to a new discovery created in portion simply because of new information and facts about Jupiter’s magnetic field, researchers consider they have an explanation for why this takes place, according to the University of Leeds.

“If you appear at Jupiter by way of a telescope, you will see stripes that go about the equator along the lines of latitude. There are dark and light bands that happen, and if you appear closely, you can see the clouds swirling about getting carried by particularly robust easterly and westerly winds. Close to the equator, the wind blows to the east, but as you alter latitude slightly, either north or south, it goes west. And then if you go a tiny additional away, it goes east once again. This alternating pattern of easterly and westerly winds is really diverse from Earth’s climate,” Chris Jones, co-author of the study on the topic, stated in a press statement.

According to Jones, each 4 out of 5 years, points alter on the planet. Often the colors of the belts can alter, and scientists have in some cases observed worldwide upheavals in climate patterns. Why this takes place has largely remained a mystery.

There is currently proof to recommend that this alter in look is associated to infrared variations about 50 kilometers under Jupiter’s surface. But new investigation by Jones and other individuals shows that these variations could be brought on by waves made by the gas giant’s magnetic field, deep in the planet’s interior.

The researchers employed information collected by NASA’s Juno mission on the planet and had been capable to track and calculate modifications in its magnetic field. The researchers found that the oscillations of the planet’s magnetic field correspond to periods of infrared radiation from its gases.

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Initially published: 26-05-2023 at 17:13 IST