Great Red Spot storms of Jupiter

Mississippi State University’s Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Dr. Donna Pierce, has inked a professional and informative article about Jupiter’s atmosphere, the Great Red Spot storms and its counter-rotating bands, which are known to lay people as the Rings of Jupiter. The Great Red Spot, a storm larger than Earth and that has continued for some 300 years, is one of the most recognizable features in Jupiter’s atmosphere and the entire solar system. NASA’s Juno spacecraft, currently orbiting Jupiter, is gathering data on the cloud bands around the planet and the Great Red Spot. New data will likely provide insights into many of the features, and unknowns, in Jupiter’s atmosphere. An analysis of historical and recently obtained data on the Great Red Spot has shown that it is shrinking and becoming both rounder and taller, and its color has also varied over time. What is driving these changes, and what do they mean for the future of the Great Red Spot? Researchers aren’t sure. However, NASA’s Juno spacecraft is gathering more data that may provide insights into many of the features of Jupiter’s atmosphere. (Source: The Conversation 03/19/19) Dr. Pierce has been at MSU since 2007. She earned her doctorate in astronomy from the University of Maryland and a bachelor’s in physics from the University of Kentucky.