Washington, July 22 (Inditop.com) Something slammed into Jupiter, creating a dark bruise about the size of the Pacific Ocean, according to an astronomer.
The bruise was noticed by amateur astronomer Paul Kalas of the University of California – Berkeley (UC-B) on July 19, with the help of Keck II telescope in Hawaii.
The near infrared image showed a bright spot in Jupiter’s southern hemisphere, where the impact had propelled reflective particles high into the relatively clear stratosphere. In visible light, the bruise appears dark against the bright surface of Jupiter.
The observation made with the Keck II telescope marks only the second time astronomers have seen the results of an impact on the planet.
The first collision occurred exactly 15 years ago, between July 16 and 22, 1994, when more than 20 fragments of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided with Jupiter.
The Shoemaker-Levy 9 (SL9) impact events were well-studied by astronomers, including several from UC-B, and many theories were subsequently developed based on the observations.
“Now we have a chance to test these ideas on a brand new impact event,” said Kalas.
