APOD: Jupiter's Clouds from New Horizons (2016 Jun 26)

[APOD Robot]

Jupiter's Clouds from New Horizons

Explanation: The New Horizons spacecraft took some stunning images of Jupiter on its way out to Pluto. Famous for its Great Red Spot, Jupiter is also known for its regular, equatorial cloud bands, visible through even modest sized telescopes. The featured image, horizontally compressed, was taken in 2007 near Jupiter's terminator and shows the Jovian giant's wide diversity of cloud patterns. On the far left are clouds closest to Jupiter's South Pole. Here turbulent whirlpools and swirls are seen in a dark region, dubbed a belt, that rings the planet. Even light colored regions, called zones, show tremendous structure, complete with complex wave patterns. The energy that drives these waves surely comes from below. New Horizons is the fastest space probe ever launched, has successfully complete its main flyby of Pluto in 2015, and is now heading further out and on track to flyby Kuiper belt object 2014 MU69 in 2019. In the near term, many space enthusiasts excitedly await Juno's arrival at Jupiter next Monday.

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[Ann]

I find the cloud tops of Jupiter incredibly beautiful.

Ann

[r.webber@zen.co.uk]

So Jupiter is on its way to Pluto. Dreadful grammar error!

[neufer]

Click to play embedded YouTube video.

So Jupiter is on its way to Pluto.

[Tszabeau]

So Jupiter is on its way to Pluto. Dreadful grammar error!

Your door is a jar.

[Chris Peterson]

So Jupiter is on its way to Pluto. Dreadful grammar error!

Not so dreadful. Technically ambiguous... but somehow I worked out the correct interpretation without even giving it conscious thought!

[neufer]

somehow I worked out the correct interpretation without even giving it conscious thought!

Yes...but that was entirely irrelephant to what I was talking about.

[Mactavish]

So Jupiter is on its way to Pluto. Dreadful grammar error!

Your door is a jar.

My door doesn’t seem to be a jar. What kind of jar do you have? None of my doors have a lid. I can see through all of my jars. Besides, what good is a door if you can see through it?

[Boomer12k]

Amazing...looks like different planks of wood...

:---[===] *

[Boomer12k]

So Jupiter is on its way to Pluto. Dreadful grammar error!

Your door is a jar.

My door doesn’t seem to be a jar. What kind of jar do you have? None of my doors have a lid. I can see through all of my jars. Besides, what good is a door if you can see through it?

A door you can see through, you know who is there, but you are safer... and a screen door you can see through but the bugs stay out... plenty purpose for doors you can see through...

:---[===] *

[starsurfer]

somehow I worked out the correct interpretation without even giving it conscious thought!

Yes...but that was entirely irrelephant to what I was talking about.

Click to view full size image

[neufer]

My door doesn’t seem to be a jar. What kind of jar do you have? None of my doors have a lid. I can see through all of my jars. Besides, what good is a door if you can see through it?

A door you can see through, you know who is there, but you are safer... and a screen door you can see through but the bugs stay out... plenty purpose for doors you can see through...*

We all adore a door that's a jar.

[Wadsworth]

Does anyone else naturally see this picture to be on its side? My mind wants to rotate it 90 degrees.

[Boomer12k]

Does anyone else naturally see this picture to be on its side? My mind wants to rotate it 90 degrees.

Now that you mention it... but it did not bother me... many satellite passing photos are at unexpected or odd angles.

:---[===] *

[MarkBour]

I hope Juno returns great analytical data on the cloud composition and can do it with high resolution. For instance, I'd like to know if we can find out whether the great red spot or any other cloud band has differing composition than other bands, zones, or belts. I think we will find many surprising discoveries from such an investigation.

[geckzilla]

I hope Juno returns great analytical data on the cloud composition and can do it with high resolution. For instance, I'd like to know if we can find out whether the great red spot or any other cloud band has differing composition than other bands, zones, or belts. I think we will find many surprising discoveries from such an investigation.

I don't want to be a party pooper, but Junocam has the odds stacked against it. I hope it will return some great imagery too, but Juno's mission isn't going to be anything like Cassini's. Don't expect years of photos.
http://www.planetary.org/blogs/emily-la ... nocam.html

[chuckster]

Dumb question : How can Juno survive, at Jupiter, on solar panels ? I always thought the outer solar system demanded RTG's ?

[Chris Peterson]

Dumb question : How can Juno survive, at Jupiter, on solar panels ? I always thought the outer solar system demanded RTG's ?

There's lots of sunlight at Jupiter. The choice of power source simply comes down to the mission design- how much power is needed and how much do different methods provide. In this case, practical sized panels were sufficient.

[chuckster]

OK, then. With all the space image processing, that makes even Pluto look brightly lit, I get lost as to how far out usable sunlight extends.
Thanks !

[BillT]

On Pluto the Sun is between 150 and 450 times as bright as the full Moon as seen from Earth. The range of brightness relates to Pluto's elliptical orbit. Even when Pluto is at aphelion, you would have no trouble seeing stuff on Pluto's day side.

[neufer]

How can Juno survive, at Jupiter, on solar panels?
I always thought the outer solar system demanded RTG's ?

1) Juno has the largest solar array ever deployed on a planetary probe.

2) Battery technology & solar cell efficiencies have improved considerably

• since we last sent a spacecraft to Jupiter.

[b][color=#0000FF]Reported timeline of solar cell energy conversion efficiencies since 1976 (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) [/color][/b]

---

<<The Juno spacecraft uses three solar panels with a total area of 60 m² the biggest on any deep-space probe except for Rosetta's 64 m². The combined mass of the three panels is nearly 340 kg. If the panels were optimized to operate at Earth, they would produce 12 to 14 kilowatts of power. Only about 486 W will be generated when Juno arrives at Jupiter, declining to near 420 W as radiation degrades the cells. The solar panels will remain in sunlight continuously from launch through to the end of the mission, except for short periods during the operation of the main engine. A central power distribution and drive unit monitors the power that is generated by the solar panels, distributes it to instruments, heaters and experiment sensors as well as batteries that are charged when excess power is available. Two 55-amp-hour lithium-ion batteries that are able to withstand the radiation environment of Jupiter will provide power when Juno passes through eclipse.>>

[Evermore]

So Jupiter is on its way to Pluto. The planet is flinging off then, which will not jar the Jim Morrisons of this planet in the least, as they are long used to unexpected occurences. Will Jupiter end up a moon of Pluto then? Or Pluto a moon of one of Saturn's moons? Or will it just all smash to smithereens? WHY has there never been a grunge band entititled The Smithereens? WHY not put music to the apod photos?

[chuckster]

How can Juno survive, at Jupiter, on solar panels?
I always thought the outer solar system demanded RTG's ?[/quote]
1) Juno has the largest solar array ever deployed on a planetary probe.

2) Battery technology & solar cell efficiencies have improved considerably

• since we last sent a spacecraft to Jupiter.

[quote=" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cell_efficiency"]

Many thanks for the great reply ! Too bad I just ran out of lunch hour.

[chuckster]

On Pluto the Sun is between 150 and 450 times as bright as the full Moon as seen from Earth. The range of brightness relates to Pluto's elliptical orbit. Even when Pluto is at aphelion, you would have no trouble seeing stuff on Pluto's day side.

I never would've believed the inverse square law left nearly that much sunlight on a planet surface that's 15 light hours distant. My intuition isn't calibrated.

[neufer]

On Pluto the Sun is between 150 and 450 times as bright as the full Moon as seen from Earth. The range of brightness relates to Pluto's elliptical orbit. Even when Pluto is at aphelion, you would have no trouble seeing stuff on Pluto's day side.

I never would've believed the inverse square law left nearly that much sunlight on a planet surface that's 15 light hours distant.

On Charon Pluto is about as bright as the Moon is as seen from Earth.