A Magnetic Vortex is Churning the Haze at Jupiter’s Poles

Jupiter’s Great Red Spot has long been a planetary icon. However, UC Berkeley astronomers have now identified equally massive, Earth-sized dark spots at the planet’s poles. These UV-dark ovals, which appear within the stratospheric haze at the poles, come and go unpredictably. Notably, they sit just below the auroral zones and absorb more ultraviolet light, making them stand out as dark features in images from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.

Between 2015 and 2022, Hubble images showed southern UV-dark ovals (SUDO) 75% of the time. In contrast, northern UV-dark ovals (NUDO) appeared in only one out of eight images.

Unusual Magnetic Activity at Jupiter’s Poles

Moreover, these ovals point to unusual magnetic processes at Jupiter’s poles that extend deep into the atmosphere, far below the aurora-producing magnetic activities seen on Earth. The findings, published in Nature Astronomy, highlight research led by UC Berkeley undergraduate Troy Tsubota and senior astronomer Michael Wong. Tsubota analyzed Hubble images, identifying eight SUDOs between 1994 and 2022, while only two NUDOs were spotted in the same period.

The images, part of the Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) project led by NASA’s Amy Simon, track atmospheric dynamics on Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Tsubota described the data as a “gold mine,” enabling detailed analysis and new discoveries.

Magnetic Vortices May Drive Haze Formation at Jupiter’s Poles

In fact, the team, including experts Tom Stallard and Xi Zhang, studied the cause of the dense hazes. However, Stallard proposed that a vortex, created by magnetic field interactions in Jupiter’s ionosphere and plasma, stirs the atmosphere, forming the dark ovals. This vortex weakens with depth, like a tornado lifting dust, though it’s unclear whether it draws haze from below or creates new haze.

The ovals appear to form in about a month and dissipate within weeks. Zhang noted the haze in these ovals is 50 times thicker than normal, driven more by vortex dynamics than chemical reactions from high-energy particles. The study exemplifies OPAL’s goal of uncovering atmospheric dynamics across the solar system’s gas giants.

“Understanding connections between atmospheric layers is crucial for all planets, including exoplanets and Earth,” Wong explained. “These findings reveal processes linking Jupiter’s internal dynamo, its satellites, plasma environment, ionosphere, and stratospheric hazes, helping us view the planet as a cohesive system.”

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