Winds on Jupiter flow in a unique pattern, Juno spacecraft reveals breezy details

Nasa’s Juno mission has made a groundbreaking discovery about Jupiter’s atmospheric winds, according to a recent paper published in the journal Nature Astronomy.

The data collected by Juno indicates that these winds penetrate the planet in a cylindrical manner, parallel to its spin axis. This revelation enhances our understanding of Jupiter’s internal structure and could provide valuable insights into other planetary atmospheres.

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Juno, which has been orbiting Jupiter since 2016, uses a suite of scientific instruments to study the gas giant’s atmosphere and internal structure. One of the ways it does this is through radio science.

By tracking Juno’s radio signal as it flies past Jupiter at speeds near 1,30,000 mph, scientists can measure tiny changes in its velocity caused by variations in the planet’s gravity field. These measurements essentially allow the mission to see into Jupiter’s atmosphere.

This technique has led to numerous discoveries, including the existence of a dilute core deep within Jupiter and the depth of the planet’s zones and belts. To determine the location and cylindrical nature of Jupiter’s winds, the study’s authors applied a mathematical technique that models gravitational variations and surface elevations of rocky planets like Earth.

Using high-precision Juno data, they were able to generate a four-fold increase in resolution over previous models.

The measurements matched a two-decade-old model that determined Jupiter’s powerful east-west zonal flows extend from the cloud-level white and red zones and belts inward. However, rather than extending in every direction like a radiating sphere, the zonal flows go inward, cylindically, and are oriented along the direction of Jupiter’s rotation axis.

This settles a longstanding debate about the structure of Jupiter’s deep atmospheric winds.

Juno is currently in an extended mission, conducting flybys of Jupiter and its icy moons Ganymede, Europa, and Io. As Juno’s journey progresses, we’re achieving scientific outcomes that truly define a new Jupiter and that likely are relevant for all giant planets, both within our solar system and beyond,” said Scott Bolton, the principal investigator of the Juno mission.

The findings from this mission continue to revolutionise our understanding of Jupiter and its atmospheric phenomena.