JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo
Image

Tracking Clouds on Jupiter

Dec 14, 2020
This image was captured by the JunoCam imager aboard NASA's Juno spacecraft on July 25, 2020. It shows how the motion of small clouds on Jupiter is used to determine wind direction (indicated with arrows).

The motion of small clouds on Jupiter is used to determine wind direction (indicated with arrows) in this work by citizen scientists John Rogers and Gerald Eichstädt. Using multiple images to track the motion of clouds was enabled by the Juno spacecraft's slow departure from Jupiter's southern hemisphere on perijove pass 28, on July 25, 2020. Zonal winds are a well-known phenomenon on Jupiter, correlating with its familiar belts and zones. Within a latitudinal band there can be regional circulation, such as the South Temperate Belt (STB) Spectre shown in this image. The STB Spectre is cyclonic (winds rotating in clockwise direction), spread out in latitude but confined in longitude.

This work is representative of an ongoing and fruitful collaboration of amateur astronomers with the Juno project. John Rogers analyzed cloud movement in three JunoCam images processed by citizen scientist Gerald Eichstädt to identify winds. Latitudinal belts and zones ( labeled with the conventions used by the amateur astronomy community and professional observers), are: SEB(S): South Equatorial Belt (south); STropZ: South Tropical Zone; STBn jet: South Temperate Belt (north) jet; STZ: South Temperate Zone; and SSTB: South South Temperate Belt.

JunoCam's raw images are available for the public to peruse and process into image products at https://missionjuno.swri.edu/junocam/processing. More information about NASA citizen science can be found at https://science.nasa.gov/citizenscience and https://www.nasa.gov/solve/opportunities/citizenscience.

More information about Juno is at https://www.nasa.gov/juno and https://missionjuno.swri.edu.

Download JPG
Download TIFF
Mission
  • Mission to Jupiter
Target
  • Jupiter
Spacecraft
  • Juno
Instrument
  • JunoCam
Credit
Image data: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSSImage processing: Gerald Eichstädt, John Rogers © CC BY

Keep Exploring

Juno's Mission Goes On

A Jupiter Circumpolar Cyclone

Two Views of Jupiter Hot Spot

Jupiter North Pole Detail

A Hot Spot on Jupiter

Jupiter's Storm Oval BA As Viewed By An Artist

A Plethora of Storms on Jupiter

All Eight Northern Circumpolar Cyclones in 2020

Storms, Science and Art

Roses on Jupiter

Related Topic

News .

6 Things to Know About NASA’s Mars Helicopter on Its Way to Mars

News .

NASA to Host Virtual Briefing on February Perseverance Mars Rover Landing

News .

NASA InSight’s ‘Mole’ Ends Its Journey on Mars

News .

NASA’s Juno Mission Expands Into the Future

News .

Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover to Capture Sounds From the Red Planet

Topic .

Solar System

News .

NASA’s Curiosity Rover Reaches Its 3,000th Day on Mars

News .

NASA Extends Exploration for Two Planetary Science Missions

News .

Celebrate the Perseverance Rover Landing With NASA's Student Challenge

News .

7 Things to Know About the NASA Rover About to Land on Mars

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors of JPL
JPL History
Documentary Series
Virtual Tour
Annual Reports
Missions
All
Current
Past
Future
News
All
Earth
Mars
Solar System
Universe
Technology
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Infographics
Engage
JPL and the Community
Lecture Series
Public Tours
Events
Team Competitions
JPL Speakers Bureau
Topics
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Stars and Galaxies
Exoplanets
Technology
JPL Life
For Media
Contacts and Information
Press Kits
More
Asteroid Watch
Robotics at JPL
Subscribe to Newsletter
Social Media
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Manager: Veronica McGregor
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Randal Jackson, Naomi Hartono