Where Cold And Warm Air Meet, Our Atmosphere Churns With Energy. From The Turbulence Of Supercell Thunderclouds

New results from our Juno mission suggest the planet is home to “shallow lightning.” An unexpected form of electrical discharge, shallow lightning comes from a unique ammonia-water solution. ⁣

⁣It was previously thought that lightning on Jupiter was similar to Earth, forming only in thunderstorms where water exists in all its phases – ice, liquid, and gas. But flashes observed at altitudes too cold for pure liquid water to exist told a different story. This illustration uses data obtained by the mission to show what these high-altitude electrical storms look like. ⁣

Understanding the inner workings of Jupiter allows us to develop theories about atmospheres on other planets and exoplanets! ⁣

Illustration Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Gerald Eichstädt/Heidi N. Becker/Koji Kuramura⁣

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

A moon halo created by ice crystal in the air

“Once you truly experience a spiritual bond that transcends physicality, you will always consciously or unconsciously seek bonds that are able to pierce into the deepest layers of your soul, and anything less just feels so frivolous.”~ AV

Pluto as seen from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft ; Its heart-shaped sea is filled with poisonous ice.

An total solar eclipse, 1905, observed from Palma, Balearic Islands, Spain, illustrated by Major Baden-Powell.

The faint rings of Uranus, shot in 1986, are made of countless fragments of water ice containing radiation-altered organic material.

Credit: NASA/JPL/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures

Planet: Jupiter

Big Dipper