http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32015814/ns/technology_and_science-space/
Comet may have hit Jupiter
NASA images show scar in planet's atmosphere near south pole
msnbc.com staff and news service reports
updated 10:37 p.m. ET, Mon., July 20, 2009
PASADENA, Calif. - Astronomers say Jupiter has apparently been struck by an object, possibly a comet.
Images taken early Monday by NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility, at the summit of the Mauna Kea volcano in Hawaii, show a dark scar in Jupiter's atmosphere near the south pole of the gas giant.
The images also show bright upwelling particles in the atmosphere, detected in near-infrared wavelengths, as well as a warming of the upper troposphere with possible extra emission from ammonia gas detected at mid-infrared wavelengths.
Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena captured the new images after receiving a tip from an Australian amateur astronomer, Anthony Wesley, on the night before.
"We were extremely lucky to be seeing Jupiter at exactly the right time, the right hour,
the right side of Jupiter to witness the event. We couldn't have planned it better,"
JPL scientist Glenn Orton said in a statement released by the lab.
Orton said the event "could be the impact of a comet, but we don't know for sure yet."
The images, taken by the space agency's infrared telescope in Hawaii, come on the 15th anniversary of another comet strike. In 1994, Jupiter was bombarded by pieces of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9.
This report includes information from The Associated Press and NASA.
Better them than us :ph34r:
:area52:
EDIT: Area 52? :yeahright: WoWtard. :mad:
Way to steal Timmay's thunder.
Space sucks.
Just those pesky monoliths multiplying again.
Maybe it was an attempt to fake a planetary landing, as the hoax on the moon landing? Now have to wait for details of a US landing on Jupiter.... :area52: :tinfoil:
Poor Jovian penguins :(
Quote from: Tyr on July 21, 2009, 11:48:30 AM
Poor Jovian penguins :(
Maybe that black spot is all the Jovian Penguins gathering to worship the Monoliths.
Quote from: BuddhaRhubarb on July 21, 2009, 11:56:20 AM
Quote from: Tyr on July 21, 2009, 11:48:30 AM
Poor Jovian penguins :(
Maybe that black spot is all the Jovian Penguins gathering to worship the Monoliths.
But I thought the black spot
was the monoliths. I wonder if this means we're gonna have two suns now. Like
that will help global warming. :huh:
Quote from: Caliga on July 21, 2009, 11:17:21 AM
:area52:
EDIT: Area 52? :yeahright: WoWtard. :mad:
:lmfao:
The collision was probably caused by goblins somehow.
Whatever images they produce are obviously fabrications. Jupiter's gravity is so strong a comet would have been ripped apart long before it could hit the planet, much like Earth's Van Allen radiation belt prevents humans from landing on the moon. Clearly this is just another in a long line of hoaxes perpetrated by NASA.
Santa is going to be a little slower this year, I fear.
RIP Comet
Quote from: Valmy on July 21, 2009, 11:16:30 AM
Better them than us :ph34r:
No shit. Thanks for taking one for the team, Jupiter.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on July 21, 2009, 06:31:17 PM
Quote from: Valmy on July 21, 2009, 11:16:30 AM
Better them than us :ph34r:
No shit. Thanks for taking one for the team, Jupiter.
Jupiter doesn't mind. That's what it's there for.
I went to the observatory to watch the Shoemaker comet hit. You couldn't even see any fireballs.
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Fmedia%2Fphoto%2F2009-07%2F48196871.jpg&hash=7967b96055906104deba8e33e70b365f1d372b97)
Quote'Incredible' new scar is spreading on Jupiter
An asteroid or comet plunged into the solar system's largest planet and left a mark that was first spotted Sunday. The event is the first of its kind in 15 years, JPL astronomers say.
For only the second time in recent history, scientists have observed the results of an object plunging into the solar system's largest planet.
The object, thought to be an asteroid or comet, left a large dark bruise that can still be seen spreading over Jupiter's southern hemisphere, according to Leigh Fletcher, a planetary scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada-Flintridge.
"This is an incredible event," Fletcher said in an interview. The last time something like this happened was 15 years ago, when fragments of the Shoemaker-Levy comet plunged into the huge gaseous envelope that makes up most of the planet.
Scientists were able to follow all 20 or so fragments as they entered the outer atmosphere, made up mostly of hydrogen and helium.
This time, the object that hit the planet was not observed. The first announcement of a new scar on the planet's exterior came Sunday from amateur Australian astronomer Anthony Wesley.
As word spread, professional astronomers around the world turned their attention to the planet, which is so large it could hold 1,400 Earths. At its closest, Jupiter is about 390 million miles from Earth, four times as far as the Earth is from the sun.
Some of the sharpest observations came from the Keck II telescope in Hawaii. UC Berkeley astronomer Paul Kalas had previously requested viewing time on the telescope and used the opportunity Monday to confirm the amateur observation.
"We don't see other bright features along the same latitude, so this was most likely the result of a single asteroid, not a chain of fragments" as with Shoemaker-Levy, UC Berkeley astronomer Franck Marchis said in a statement.
The event could help scientists better understand the meteorology on Jupiter, Fletcher said. The scar was probably a result of the object disturbing high altitude aerosols, or dust particles, in the atmosphere.
When first analyzed, it was about the size of the Pacific Ocean. Fletcher said Tuesday that the bruise was growing and would probably continue to do so until fading away in a few days or weeks.
Even at its largest, the feature will probably remain a mere blot compared with the planet's Great Red Spot, a long-lasting storm that is twice the diameter of Earth.
Can I cry conspiracy?
Quote from: Peter Wiggin on July 21, 2009, 02:44:12 PM:lmfao:
The collision was probably caused by goblins somehow.
The comment was directed at katmai. -_-
I don't care.