Why does jupiter have bands

When applied to Jupiter, it explains the mystery of why the jets penetrate only so far. In contrast to Earth where the jet streams are wavy and irregular, those on Jupiter are much straighter. By studying Jupiter, not only do we unravel the mysteries in the interior of the gas giant, but we can also use Jupiter as a laboratory for studying how atmospheric flows work in general.

Can a star capture a planet? Astroquizzical Astroquizzical answers all of your questions about space. Submit a question! Order the Book. Become a Patron! Astroquizzical RSS. All text copyright Jillian Scudder Tonight's Sky — Enter coordinates. UTC Offset:. Picture of the Day Image Galleries.

Watch : Mining the Moon for rocket fuel. Queen guitarist Brian May and David Eicher launch new astronomy book. Last chance to join our Costa Rica Star Party! Learn about the Moon in a great new book New book chronicles the space program. Dave's Universe Year of Pluto. Groups Why Join? Astronomy Day. The Complete Star Atlas. A combination of wind speed, wind direction, atmospheric jets, and cloud composition causes Jupiter's banded appearance.

Unlike the terrestrial planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars , the outer planets are larger and rotate faster. Two main forces dominate their motions: centrifugal, which causes their shapes to be oblate rather than spherical, and Coriolis, which makes it much harder for material to move north or south compared with east or west.

The boundaries between belts and zones are coincident with peaks or troughs in the east-west jets. Here is how our theory ties in. Using principles from statistical physics of turbulent systems, we devised a mathematical model which predicts that when magnetic fields are strong enough, the jets shut down. Specifically, within our model a jet organises magnetic fluctuations in such a manner so that the coherent effect of these fluctuations acts to dampen the jet itself.

This offers a partial explanation as to why the jets terminate at about 3,km below the clouds. Edition: Available editions United Kingdom. Become an author Sign up as a reader Sign in.