NASA Confirms Presence Of Water In Jupiter’s Great Red Spot

Washington DC: An in-depth study of the Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, a storm that has been raging on the planet for over 350 years, by NASA scientists has revealed the presence of water above the planet’s deepest clouds.

A team led by Gordon I. Bjoraker, Astrophysicist at NASA’s Goddard Spaceflight centre in Maryland, US, detected the chemical signatures of water above the planet’s deepest clouds, while looking from ground-based telescopes at wavelengths sensitive to thermal radiation leaking from the depths of Jupiter’s continuing storm.

NASA scientists have revealed that the pressure of water, combined with presence of carbon monoxide implies that Jupiter has two to nine times more oxygen than the sun.This supports the earlier theoretical and computer-simulation models that had predicted abundant water (H2O) on Jupiter.

Bjoraker further informed that the moons that orbit Jupiter are mostly composed of water ice, so the whole neighbourhood has plenty of water. Hence, there is a strong possibility that the planet contains huge amount of water.The location of the water cloud, plus the amount of carbon monoxide that the researchers identified on Jupiter, confirms that the giant planet is rich in oxygen and water.

Scientists have revealed that Jupiter’s water abundance will reveal a lot of unknown facts regarding the formation of the planet. Notably, Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is full of dense clouds, which makes it hard for electromagnetic energy to traverse through them.

Also Read: Chandrayaan 2 To Be Launched In January 2019: ISRO Chief