The first images of Jupiter captured by NASA’s Juno spacecraft, which we got a peek at last May, were even more stunning than we could have hoped for. Since then, Juno has continued to orbit the gas giant, sending back more and more photos for scientists to study and for the rest of us not only to be awed by—and even, if we’re feeling enterprising, to edit ourselves.
On December 16, Juno made its ninth science flyby (“a gravity science orientation pass“) over Jupiter’s clouds, which resulted in a whole new treasure trove of raw images that NASA added to its ever-growing collection. As always those images are shared online, where the public is encouraged to download them, process and edit them, and then share them back for everyone to enjoy. The most recent Juno trip led to another incredible image from “citizen scientists” Gerald Eichstädt and Seán Doran, based on pictures “of colorful, turbulent clouds in Jupiter’s northern hemisphere.”
“NASA’s Juno spacecraft was a little more than one Earth diameter from Jupiter when it captured this mind-bending, color-enhanced view of the planet’s tumultuous atmosphere. Jupiter completely fills the image, with only a hint of the terminator (where daylight fades to night) in the upper right corner, and no visible limb (the curved edge of the planet).”
It’s especially incredible when you consider how raw the original images really are.
New #JunoCam raw images from my latest #Jupiter flyby are available now. Download, process + share https://t.co/ijHwy72xXp #citizenscience pic.twitter.com/6uojzeWx9Q
— NASA's Juno Mission (@NASAJuno) December 20, 2017
The collection of processed photos is one of our favorite sites on the internet, but Eichstädt also put together a new video for us to marvel at.
Juno might be out there on its own soaring high above Jupiter, but its definitely not alone in working to show us how beautiful our solar system is.
Which processed photo is your favorite? Land in our comments section below to tell us yours.
Images: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Gerald Eichstädt/Seán Doran
