Using the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA has made a unique discovery on Jupiter.
Astronomers have discovered a powerful jet stream above Jupiter’s equator. This is done with the help of the infrared camera located in the telescope.
The jet stream is 4,800 kilometers wide, located 40 kilometers above the clouds, and moves at a speed of 515 kilometers per hour, according to NASA.
The speed of the jet stream is therefore twice the speed of the worst hurricane imaginable on Earth, a Category 5 hurricane.
“This completely surprised us,” says Richardo Hueso, one of the study’s co-authors, in a statement.
– What we’ve always seen as a hazy haze in Jupiter’s atmosphere now appears as sharp features that we can follow as the planet’s rapid rotation.
Scientists: It gives us insight into the atmosphere
According to the researchers, the discovery of the jet stream could provide insight into how different layers of Jupiter’s turbulent atmosphere interact with each other.
Webb has already made new discoveries about Jupiter’s rings, its satellites and its atmosphere, says researcher Imke de Pater in a statement to NASA.
Since its launch into space on Christmas Day 2021, the James Webb Space Telescope has captured many images that have dazzled the world. Last year, a space telescope captured a striking picture of the universe 13 billion years ago.
Earlier this year, the most distant supermassive black hole ever discovered was discovered using a telescope.
Here the pilot discovers a mysterious object: “It’s black”
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