The Great Red Spot: What Caused Jupiter's Huge Red Spot?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the origins and characteristics of Jupiter's Great Red Spot, exploring various theories about its formation and persistence. Participants examine potential causes, including atmospheric dynamics and internal heat sources, while also drawing comparisons to similar phenomena on other gas giants.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that the Great Red Spot may have been caused by a large impact, though this remains speculative.
  • Others propose that the Great Red Spot functions as a persistent hurricane, driven by the Coriolis force due to Jupiter's rapid rotation and its internal heat.
  • It is noted that Jupiter radiates more energy than it receives, possibly due to ongoing gravitational collapse and internal radioactive heat sources.
  • Participants mention that similar structures have been observed on Saturn and Neptune, indicating a broader phenomenon among gas giants.
  • There is a discussion about the implications of Jupiter's gas composition collapsing, with some expressing concern about potential implosion, while others clarify that there are limits to this process and that it has been ongoing for billions of years without catastrophic consequences.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express multiple competing views regarding the causes of the Great Red Spot and its implications, with no consensus reached on a definitive explanation.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the speculative nature of the proposed causes and the dependence on definitions of atmospheric phenomena. The discussion does not resolve the complexities of the Great Red Spot's persistence or the implications of Jupiter's internal processes.

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what caused that huge red spot on Jupiter ?
 
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In all honesty, no one knows because as long as people have had telescopes powerful enough to resolve it it's been there. One of the more prevalent theories is perhaps it was caused by a large impact of some sort.
 
Well, how do storms form on the earth?
 
Bladibla said:
Well, how do storms form on the earth?


you maybe right, or something big fell out of Jupiter ?
 
It seems to be a persistent 'hurricane' of some sort. The energy for which may come from two sources. One is the corriolis force of Jupiter's rotation. Because Jupiter is very large (11X diameter of Earth) and rotating rapidly this force is much larger than on Earth, the second is the internal heat of Jupiter itself. One of the interesting things about Jupiter is that it radiates more energy than it receives. This may be due to the fact that the gas giant is still gravitationally collapsing, and maybe it has substantial internal radioactive heat sources.

Garth
 
http://www.seds.org/billa/tnp/jupiter.html

The Great Red Spot (GRS) has been seen by Earthly observers for more than 300 years... The GRS is an oval about 12,000 by 25,000 km, big enough to hold two Earths. Other smaller but similar spots have been known for decades. Infrared observations and the direction of its rotation indicate that the GRS is a high-pressure region whose cloud tops are significantly higher and colder than the surrounding regions. Similar structures have been seen on Saturn and Neptune. It is not known how such structures can persist for so long.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Garth said:
It seems to be a persistent 'hurricane' of some sort. The energy for which may come from two sources. One is the corriolis force of Jupiter's rotation. Because Jupiter is very large (11X diameter of Earth) and rotating rapidly this force is much larger than on Earth, the second is the internal heat of Jupiter itself. One of the interesting things about Jupiter is that it radiates more energy than it receives. This may be due to the fact that the gas giant is still gravitationally collapsing, and maybe it has substantial internal radioactive heat sources.

Garth

Wait if the gas the planet is made of is still collapsing, wouldn't that mean it will eventually implode on itself? That would be bad. :bugeye:
 
misskitty said:
Wait if the gas the planet is made of is still collapsing, wouldn't that mean it will eventually implode on itself?

No, there's a limit to how much it can compress (e.g., it doesn't have enough mass to overcome the repulsive force between atoms and become a black hole). Also note that Jupiter started forming over 4 billion years ago and has been "collapsing" ever since. Nothing to worry about. :smile:
 

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