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Credit & Copyright: NASA,
Voyager 1,
JPL, Caltech;
Processing & License:
Alexis Tranchandon /
Solaris
Explanation:
What are those spots on Jupiter?
Largest and furthest, just right of center, is the
Great Red Spot --
a huge
storm system that has been raging on
Jupiter
possibly since
Giovanni Cassini's likely notation of it
355 years ago.
It is not yet known why this
Great Spot is red.
The spot toward the lower left is one of Jupiter's largest moons:
Europa.
Images from Voyager
in 1979 bolster the modern hypothesis that
Europa has an underground ocean and is therefore a good place to
look for extraterrestrial life.
But what about the dark spot on the upper right?
That is a shadow of another of Jupiter's large moons:
Io.
Voyager 1 discovered
Io to be so volcanic that no
impact craters could be found.
Sixteen frames from
Voyager
1's flyby of Jupiter in 1979 were recently reprocessed and merged to create the
featured image.
About 43 years ago,
Voyager
1 launched from Earth and started one of the
greatest explorations of the
Solar System ever.
Free Download:
Voyager Posters
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Europa - Jupiter - Voyager 1
Publications with words: Europa - Jupiter - Voyager 1
See also: