James Webb Space Telescope Targets Jupiter's Big Red Spot

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, the most ambitious and complex space observatory ever built, will use its unmatched infrared capabilities to study Jupiter's large red spot, illuminating the enigmatic storm and relying on Hubble Space Telescope data and other observatories.

Jupiter's iconic storm is on the list of Webb telescope targets chosen by guaranteed weather observers, scientists who helped develop the incredibly complex telescope and among the first to use it to observe the universe . One of the scientific goals of the telescope is to study planets, including the mysteries that planets still possess in our own solar system since Mars and beyond.

Leigh Fletcher, Senior Scientist in Planetary Science at the University of Leicester in the UK, is the lead scientist for the Webb telescope observations on the Jupiter storm. His team is part of a larger effort to study multiple targets in our solar system with Webb, led by astronomer Heidi Hammel, executive vice president of the Association of Universities for Research in astronomy (AURA). NASA chose Hammel as an interdisciplinary scientist for Webb in 2002.

"Webb's infrared sensitivity provides an ideal complement to Hubble's visible wavelength studies on the big red spot," Hammel explained. "Hubble's images have revealed striking changes in the size of the Great Red Spot over the life span of several decades of the mission."

Fletcher and his team plan to use the Webb Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) to create multispectral maps of the Big Red Spot and analyze its thermal, chemical and cloud structures. Scientists will be able to observe infrared wavelengths that could illuminate the spot's iconic color, often attributed to the sun's ultraviolet radiation that interacts with nitrogen, sulfur and phosphorous chemicals that are lifted from the deeper atmosphere. of Jupiter by powerful atmospheric agents. currents in the storm.

Fletcher explained that using MIRI to observe in the 5 to 7 micrometer range might be particularly revealing for the Great Red Spot, as no other mission could observe Jupiter in this part of the electromagnetic spectrum, and the observations in such wavelengths are not possible since the earth. These wavelengths of light could allow scientists to see unique chemical byproducts of the storm, which would provide insight into its composition.

"We will look for signatures of all the chemical compounds that are unique to the [Great Red Spot]Chromophores are the parts of the molecules responsible for their color: "If we do not see any unexpected chemical or aerosol signatures … then the mystery of the red chromophores could be responsible for the red chromophores," explains Fletcher. this red color may remain unresolved. "

Webb's observations can also help determine if the large red spot generates heat and releases it into the upper atmosphere of Jupiter, a phenomenon that could explain the high temperatures in this region. Recent research funded by NASA has shown that the collision of gravity waves and sound waves produced by the storm could generate the observed heat, and Fletcher said that Webb might be able to collect data at the same time. ;support.

"All the waves produced by vigorous convective activity in the storm must cross the stratosphere before they reach the ionosphere and the thermosphere," he explained. "So, if they really exist and are responsible for heating the upper layers of Jupiter, we hope we will see evidence of their passage in our data."

Generations of astronomers have studied the big red spot; the storm has been monitored since 1830, but has probably existed for more than 350 years. The reason for the longevity of the storm remains largely a mystery, and Fletcher explained that the key to understanding the formation of storms on Jupiter is to witness their complete life cycle – growing, shrinking, and eventually dying . We have not seen the shape of the Big Red Spot, and it will not die soon (though it has narrowed, as shown by images from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and other observatories.) ), scientists must therefore observe smaller and cooler storms. on the planet to see how they start and evolve, something that Webb can do in the future, Fletcher said.

"These particular observations will reveal the vertical structure of the storm, which will be an important constraint for Jovian's numerical simulations. [Jupiter] "If these simulations can help explain what Webb is observing in the infrared, then we'll be a little closer to understanding how these gigantic maelstroms have been living for so long."

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