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HUBBLE OBSERVES JUPITER’S // GREAT RED SPOT CHANGING

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Jupiter’s most iconic feature is a giant storm
known as the Great Red Spot.

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The massive storm’s clouds spin at speeds
that exceed 400 miles per hour (643 km/h).

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In the 1800s, astronomers observed
the storm many times.
But no one knows when it began.

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For more than a century, astronomers noted it
shrinking in size and becoming more circular than oval.

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Hubble’s deployment in 1990 gave them
even clearer annual views of Jupiter.

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But they started to notice something strange...

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The winds on the outermost edge of the storm
have increased by up to 8 percent from 2009 to 2020.

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In contrast, the winds near the storm’s
innermost region are moving significantly slower.

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With Hubble’s precise yearly readings, astronomers
monitored the Great Red Spot’s increasing speeds.

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While this increase is a mystery…

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...this important data helps us understand what powers
the Great Red Spot and how it maintains energy.

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And as we better learn how Jupiter’s atmosphere works…

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...we’ll understand more about the atmospheres
of other planets, including our own.

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[ MUSIC ]