During its 20th pass by Jupiter, NASA’s Juno orbiter captured four stunning images of the giant planet that were compiled into a near face-on view, showing its turbulent northern hemisphere in remarkable detail. The images were captured on 29 May at altitudes ranging from 18,600 kilometres (11,600 miles) to 8,600 kilometres (5,400 miles) at northern latitudes spanning 59 to 34 degrees. Citizen scientist Kevin M. Gill created this image from data provided by the spacecraft’s JunoCam imager.
Launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, in 2011, the solar-powered Juno braked into polar orbit around Jupiter in July 2016. Since then, it has been studying Jupiter’s atmosphere, its magnetic field and internal structure in great detail, sending back a steady stream of data that includes images captured by the JunoCam instrument. Intended primarily for public outreach, JunoCam images are available to the public for processing.
