Watch the king of the planets turn on its throne

Jupiter’s intense northern and southern lights, or aurorae, behave independently of each other according to a new study using NASA’s Chandra X-ray and ESA’s XMM-Newton observatories.

A new analysis of data from NASA’s Cassini mission in combination with lab experiments contradicts the leading theory that the striking colour of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is due to reddish chemicals upwelling from below.

Whether you’re a casual stargazer or armed with a toolkit of observing gadgets, chances are you have caught a glimpse of Jupiter this year beckoning as one of the brightest objects in the night sky. It’s about to get its first visitor in nearly a decade, when NASA’s Juno spacecraft rockets into orbit.