                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                2025 March 9
   The image shows the north pole of Jupiter in red (infrared) light. Many
   cyclonic swirls surround the pole. Please see the explanation for more
                            detailed information.

                      Cyclones at Jupiter's North Pole
           Image Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech, SwRI, ASI, INAF, JIRAM

   Explanation: Why are there so many cyclones around the north pole of
   Jupiter? The topic is still being researched. NASA's robotic Juno
   mission orbiting Jupiter took data in 2018 that was used to construct
   this stunning view of the curious cyclones at Jupiter's north pole.
   Measuring the thermal emission from Jovian cloud tops, the infrared
   observations are not restricted to the hemisphere illuminated by
   sunlight. They reveal eight cyclonic features that surround a cyclone
   about 4,000 kilometers in diameter, just offset from the giant planet's
   geographic north pole. Similar data show a cyclone at the Jovian south
   pole with five circumpolar cyclones. The south pole cyclones are
   slightly larger than their northern cousins. Oddly, data from the once
   Saturn-orbiting Cassini mission has shown that Saturn's north and south
   poles each have only a single cyclonic storm system.

                     Tomorrow's picture: california red
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

