APOD
Beneath Jupiter
May 25, 2025NASA,
Juno,
SwRI,
MSSS;
Processing &
License:
Gerald Eichstädt &
Seán Doran
About This Image
Jupiter is stranger than we knew. NASA's Juno spacecraft has now completed over 70 swoops past Jupiter as it moves around its highly elliptical orbit. Pictured from 2017, Jupiter is seen from below where, surprisingly, the horizontal bands that cover most of the planet disappear into swirls and complex patterns. A line of white oval clouds is visible nearer to the equator. Impressive results from Juno show that Jupiter's weather phenomena can extend deep below its cloud tops, that Jupiter's center has a core that is unexpectedly large and soft, and that Jupiter's magnetic field varies greatly with location. Although Juno is scheduled to keep orbiting Jupiter further into 2025, at some time the robotic spacecraft will be maneuvered to plunge into the giant planet. Jigsaw Jumble: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day
On This Day in Space History
On May 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy announced the goal of landing a man on the Moon before the end of the decade.
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