Jupiter's aurorae put the Earth's to shame
09 JULY 2018
Images from Juno surprise planetary scientists with unexpected results. Richard A Lovett reports.
Planetary scientists studying the upper atmosphere of Jupiter have discovered unexpected details in bright spots in its aurorae, created by two of its largest moons, Io, and Ganymede.
Earth’s aurorae are its southern and northern lights, visible as shimmering bands of colour, particularly in the polar winters. But Earth isn’t the only planet to have them.
“Aurorae are quite common in the solar system,” says Alessandro Mura, a planetary scientist and astrophysicist at Italy’s National Institute for Astrophysics.
Earth, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are all known to have them. They are created when charged particles hit an upper part of a planet’s atmosphere known as its ionosphere.
More:
https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/jupiter-s-aurorae-put-the-earth-s-to-shame
