Jupiters Wolken bestehen nicht aus Ammoniakeis
Astronom*innen haben lange Zeit angenommen, dass die oberen Wolkenschichten des Jupiter, die die charakteristischen hellbraunen Gürtel des Planeten bilden, aus gefrorenem Ammoniak bestehen. Eine neue Studie, an der Amateur- und Berufsastronom*innen beteiligt waren, hat jedoch gezeigt, dass diese Wolken tiefer in der Atmosphäre angesiedelt sind als bisher angenommen und wahrscheinlich aus etwas völlig anderem bestehen: Ammoniumhydrogensulfid, das mit Smog vermischt ist.
Der Hobbyforscher Steve Hill hatte zuvor gezeigt, dass er die Atmosphäre des Planeten nur mit speziellen Farbfiltern und seinem Gartenteleskop kartieren konnte. Diese Ergebnisse lieferten erste Hinweise darauf, dass die Wolken zu tief in der warmen Atmosphäre des Jupiters lagen, um mit Wolken aus Ammoniakeis vereinbar zu sein. Um dies zu überprüfen, schloss sich Hill mit Patrick Irwin von der Universität Oxford zusammen, dessen Team zuvor das bahnbrechende MUSE-Instrument am Very Large Telescope (VLT) der ESO zur Untersuchung der Atmosphäre von Gasriesen eingesetzt hatte.
MUSE ist in der Lage, die Atmosphäre des Jupiters gleichzeitig in vielen einzelnen Wellenlängen zu untersuchen und dadurch die verschiedenen Moleküle, aus denen die Atmosphäre des Planeten besteht, zu kartieren. Dieses animierte Bild, das auf echten MUSE-Daten basiert, zeigt, wie der Gasriese bei verschiedenen Wellenlängen aussieht.
Die neue Studie zeigt, dass dieser neue Ansatz mit Hobbyteleskopen oder mittels VLT/MUSE die Häufigkeit von Ammoniak in der Jupiteratmosphäre mit überraschender Genauigkeit kartieren kann. Was die Wolken anbetrifft, so kam das Team zu dem Schluss, dass die Jupiteratmosphäre einer geschichteten Torte ähnelt. Wolken aus Ammoniumhydrogensulfid bedecken die oberen Schichten, aber manchmal gibt es auch eine Garnierung aus Ammoniakeiswolken, die durch starke vertikale Konvektion nach oben gebracht werden. Die gesamte Struktur des Kuchens ist jedoch noch nicht vollständig bekannt, und die Arbeit von Hobbyastronom*innen wird entscheidend dazu beitragen, sie zu entschlüsseln. Wenn Sie also das nächste Mal Jupiter oder Saturn von Ihrem Garten aus beobachten, werden Sie vielleicht auch noch eines der Geheimnisse unseres Sonnensystems lüften.
Bildnachweis:ESO/Irwin et al.
Über das Video
| ID: | potw2502a |
| Sprache: | de-ch |
| Veröffentlichungsdatum: | 13. Januar 2025 06:00 |
| Dauer: | 45 s |
| Frame rate: | 25 fps |
Über das Objekt
| Name: | Jupiter |
| Typ: | Solar System : Planet : Feature : Atmosphere |
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