                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2021 September 17

                           Video: Flash on Jupiter
      Video Credit & Copyright: T. Humbert, S. Barré, A. Desmougin & D.
           Walliang (Société Lorraine d'Astronomie), Astroqueyras

   Explanation: There has been a flash on Jupiter. A few days ago, several
   groups monitoring our Solar System's largest planet noticed a
   two-second long burst of light. Such flashes have been seen before,
   with the most famous being a series of impactor strikes in 1994. Then,
   fragments of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 struck Jupiter leaving dark patches
   that lasted for months. Since then, at least seven impacts have been
   recorded on Jupiter -- usually discovered by amateur astronomers. In
   the featured video, variations in the Earth's atmosphere cause
   Jupiter's image to shimmer when, suddenly, a bright flash appears just
   left of center. Io and its shadow are visible on the right. What hit
   Jupiter will likely never be known, but considering what we do know of
   the nearby Solar System, it was likely a piece of rocky and ice --
   perhaps the size of a bus -- that broke off long-ago from a passing
   comet or asteroid.

                     Tomorrow's picture: Rubin's Galaxy
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
                NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC
                             & Michigan Tech. U.


