Tag

Planetary Atmospheres

All articles tagged with #planetary atmospheres

science16 days ago•16 min saved

Webb and Hubble Team Up for a Layered Portrait of Saturn

NASA, ESA and CSA released new Saturn images from the James Webb Space Telescope and Hubble that reveal different atmospheric layers: Hubble’s visible-light photos show color bands and storms, while Webb’s infrared view highlights deep clouds, aerosols, and the rings’ ice; taken in Aug 2024 (Hubble) and a few months later (Webb), the pair helps scientists study Saturn’s atmosphere across depths and track seasonal changes as it moves toward the 2025 equinox, with future observations promising even clearer southern-hemisphere views.

via Engadget|

#hubble-space-telescope #infrared-imaging #james-webb-space-telescope

science16 days ago•7 min saved

Webb and Hubble Deliver a Multi-Layer Portrait of Saturn

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Hubble Space Telescope released complementary views of Saturn in infrared and visible light, revealing a dynamic atmosphere, bright rings, and several moons. The multi-wavelength approach lets scientists probe different atmospheric depths, effectively slicing Saturn's atmosphere by altitude. Webb highlights features like the long-lived northern ribbon wave and remnants of the Great Springtime Storm (2010–12), while Hubble shows color variations and ring shadows. Captured about 14 weeks apart in late 2024 as part of ongoing monitoring (including Cassini-era data and the OPAL program), the observations extend Saturn’s atmospheric record and demonstrate Webb’s infrared capabilities alongside Hubble’s view, in an international NASA/ESA/CSA collaboration.

via NASA Science (.gov)|

#hubble-space-telescope #james-webb-space-telescope #planetary-atmospheres

science6 months ago•7 min saved

Cosmic Discoveries Unveil Hidden Chemistry of Giant Planets

A rare brown dwarf nicknamed 'The Accident' has provided the first detection of silane, a silicon-based molecule, revealing new insights into the atmospheric chemistry of giant planets and brown dwarfs, and suggesting that the early universe had less oxygen, allowing silicon to bond with hydrogen instead.

via SciTechDaily|

#brown-dwarf #james-webb-space-telescope #planetary-atmospheres

science7 months ago•5 min saved

NASA and Astronomers Uncover Rare Space Molecule and Celestial Mysteries

A NASA study using the James Webb Space Telescope discovered silane in a peculiar brown dwarf called 'The Accident,' shedding light on the elusive presence of silicon compounds in Jupiter and Saturn's atmospheres and offering insights into planetary chemistry and formation history.

via NASA (.gov)|

#brown-dwarf #james-webb-space-telescope #nasa

science7 months ago•3 min saved

Voyager 2 Reveals Jupiter's Enormous Red Spot

Voyager 2's 1979 flyby provided the first detailed study of Jupiter's Great Red Spot, revealing its massive size, dynamic structure, and longevity, which continues to challenge our understanding of planetary storms, although its size and appearance are still changing today.

via WION|

#great-red-spot #jupiter #planetary-atmospheres

science10 months ago•8 min saved

Space's Surprising Noise Levels

Space itself is silent due to the vacuum, but sound can exist in various forms within celestial objects and atmospheres, such as pressure waves from black holes, gas clouds, and planetary atmospheres, which can be converted into audible sounds for study. These sounds reveal important information about the universe and planetary conditions, despite being inaudible to human ears.

via Salon.com|

#astronomy #black-hole #planetary-atmospheres

science1 year ago•5 min saved

Jupiter's Magnetic Tornadoes Create Earth-Sized Polar Storms

Scientists have discovered that magnetic tornadoes on Jupiter are responsible for creating massive Earth-sized storms, appearing as dark ovals in the planet's atmosphere. These storms are driven by powerful magnetic vortices near Jupiter's poles, which stir the atmosphere and create dense cloud patches. This finding, based on data from the Hubble Space Telescope, provides new insights into Jupiter's atmospheric and magnetic dynamics, offering a deeper understanding of weather systems on other gas giants and exoplanets with strong magnetic fields.

via The Daily Galaxy --Great Discoveries Channel|

#hubble-space-telescope #jupiter #magnetic-tornadoes

science-and-space1 year ago•4 min saved

Webb Telescope Unveils Mystery Behind 'Puffy' Exoplanets

New observations from the James Webb Space Telescope suggest that the unusually low methane levels in the atmosphere of the exoplanet WASP-107 b may explain its "puffy" nature. The findings indicate that the planet's atmosphere is inflated due to high internal temperatures and tidal heating from its star, rather than requiring exotic formation theories. This research, combined with previous Hubble data, provides new insights into the atmospheric dynamics and composition of this lightweight, marshmallow-like planet.

via Livescience.com|

#exoplanets #james-webb-space-telescope #methane

science-and-astronomy2 years ago•6 min saved

New Study Reveals Surprising Habitable Potential of Exoplanets in Trappist-1 System

A new study suggests that the exoplanets in the Trappist-1 system may be more habitable than previously thought. Previous models indicated that the planets' water would have evaporated due to the star's hotter past, making it unlikely for life to exist. However, a new modeling technique that takes into account actual atmospheric conditions suggests that a significant amount of water may have survived within the rocks, allowing for the possibility of liquid oceans and potential life on these planets. These findings have implications for the search for life outside our solar system, as small cool stars like Trappist-1 are common in the Milky Way galaxy.

via Space.com|

#exoplanets #habitability #life

science3 years ago•4 min saved

Hubble telescope tracks gas giant transformations.

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured images of Jupiter and Uranus, showing changes in their weather and seasons over time. Uranus has a peculiar, tilted axis that causes one hemisphere to be without sunlight for about 42 years at a time. In November 2022, Uranus' north pole had a large off-white circle caused by a thickened photochemical haze, while Jupiter's Great Red Spot was observed to be shrinking. Scientists are using Hubble to better understand the atmospheric dynamics and evolution of these outer planets.

via CNN|

#hubble-telescope #jupiter #planetary-atmospheres