New white spot on Saturn grows, changes.New white spot on Saturn grows, changes A huge "white spot," discovered in Saturn's atmosphere in late September (SN: 10/13/90, p.228), has developed into a wide band that now encircles the planet's equator. These photos, taken Nov. 9 (left) and Nov. 11, are the Hubble Space Telescope's first images of the dramatic feature. The clouds probably consist of ammonia ice crystals, says James A. Westphal of the California Institute of Technology California Institute of Technology, at Pasadena, Calif.; originally for men, became coeducational in 1970; founded 1891 as Throop Polytechnic Institute; called Throop College of Technology, 1913–20. in Pasadena. The Hubble images, sharper than photos taken through Earth's atmosphere “Air” redirects here. For other uses, see Air (disambiguation). Earth's atmosphere is a layer of gases surrounding the planet Earth and retained by the Earth's gravity. It contains roughly (by molar content/volume) 78% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0. by ground-based telescopes, reveal structural details of what Westphal calls "a very turbulent atmosphere that is very similar to the cloud system that trails the Great Red Spot on Jupiter." Indeed, he says, "maybe Saturn is turning into another Jupiter, and is in the process of developing the same kind of prominent banded structure in its atmosphere." Astronomers Famous astronomers and astrophysicists include: Directory: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A
The small white and black spots in these photos are artifacts artifacts see specimen artifacts. caused by such factors as cosmic rays cosmic rays, charged particles moving at nearly the speed of light reaching the earth from outer space. Primary cosmic rays consist mostly of protons (nuclei of hydrogen atoms), some alpha particles (helium nuclei), and lesser amounts of nuclei of carbon, nitrogen, hitting the camera, Westphal says. |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion