Story highlights
The findings of the research, published in the journal AGU Advances state that the Ultraviolet Spectrograph instrument of the Juno mission, the gas-giant orbiter is illuminating the provenance of Jovian polar light
The Juno spacecraft of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has revealed the dark origins of Jupiter s mysterious auroral storms, in a recent study.
The findings of the research, published in the journal AGU Advances state that the Ultraviolet Spectrograph instrument of the Juno mission, the gas-giant orbiter is illuminating the provenance of Jovian polar light.
It reveals for the first time the birth of auroral dawn storms – the early morning brightening unique to Jupiter’s spectacular aurorae. These immense, transient displays of light occur at both Jovian poles and had previously been observed only by ground-based and Earth-orbiting observatories, notably NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.
A spectacular and dramatic ultraviolet auroras on Jupiter is generated by charged particles escaping its volcanic moon Io, according to a new NASA study.
The origins of the bright blue circular aurora were revealed by the NASA Juno spacecraft, which is currently studying the gas giant from orbit.
The Jovian polar light show, also known as the auroral dawn storms, brighten up the early morning north and south poles of the massive world.
These immense, transient displays of light evolve in a similar way to aurora substorms that undulate across Earth s polar skies, according to NASA and the University of Liège team behind the new discovery.
Seeing Pluto like never before
Seeing Pluto like never before
Updated:
Updated:
March 08, 2021 11:58 IST
Twenty five years ago, on March 7, 1996, the first image-based surface map of Pluto was released. Sixty six years after it had been discovered, astronomers finally saw details on its surface directly. While we have had better images of the dwarf planet since, A.S.Ganesh takes a look at these first images and how they helped us understand Pluto better.
Share Article
AAA
The first image-based surface map of Pluto that was released on March 7, 1996.
| Photo Credit:
NASA
Twenty five years ago, on March 7, 1996, the first image-based surface map of Pluto was released. Sixty six years after it had been discovered, astronomers finally saw details on its surface directly. While we have had better images of the dwarf planet since, A.S.Ganesh takes a look at these first images and how they helped us understand Pluto better.
NASA/KSC
To explore the Pluto-Charon system, NASA designed the small New Horizons probe and put it on one of the largest rockets, the Atlas V. When it left Earth, New Horizons was the fastest spacecraft ever, zooming to the end of the solar system at a speed of more than 58,000 km (36,000 miles) per hour. With the exploration of Pluto, NASA probes would have visited every planet, but before New Horizons even got past Jupiter…
August 24, 2006: Pluto Demoted to Dwarf Planet
The dwarf planet Ceres in a photograph taken by NASA s Dawn spacecraft on February 19, 2015, from a distance of nearly 46,000 km (29,000 miles). It shows that the brightest spot on Ceres has a dimmer companion, which apparently lies in the same basin.