The James Webb Space Telescope has released new photos of Neptune.
The telescope’s infrared instruments detail the elements around Neptune that were lost by the Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1989.
Elements include the rings and dust collections around Neptune.
Scientists are also intrigued by the various cloud structures, which could provide new clues to the planet’s atmosphere.
In addition to highlighting the planet Neptune itself, the James Webb Space Telescope also observed seven of the 14 moons orbiting Neptune.
Of all the moons, the most significant is Triton because when photographed it looks like a star.
The reason is that Neptune’s appearance turns dark in telescope observations because it absorbs methane in infrared waves. While Triton reflects 70% of the sun’s rays on the surface of the ice so that it appears very bright.
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Professor Leigh Fletcher, from the University of Leicester, UK, who is attending the Europlanetary Science Congress in Granada, Spain, said everyone present “is trying to decipher it on their mobile phones, but it’s amazing to be able to see the rings and we’re accessing waves that haven’t been seen before. ” never seen before “.
NASA / ESA / CSA / STScI“It’s great to see how happy everyone is!” he told BBC News.
“Long waves are relatively new and can give us a window into deep circulation patterns with bright equatorial bands similar to those of Jupiter and Saturn.
“Strong Hurricane Neptune is still active and the entire Neptune family is represented, with moon rings and Triton.”
Neptune is the outermost planet of the Milky Way, furthest from Uranus and Saturn.
Neptune orbits the Sun at a distance of about 4.5 billion kilometers. With this distance, it takes 164.8 years to complete a revolution, aka revolution.
Like other outer planets of the Milky Way, Neptune’s atmosphere is rich in hydrogen and helium. There is a pillar of the ice element that contains water, ammonia and methane.
Neptune’s diameter is nearly 50,000 kilometers or nearly four times the diameter of the Earth.
NASA / ESA / CSA / STScIJames Webb is a collaborative project between US, European and Canadian space agencies.
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