Many times, we don’t even realize that, at any moment, no matter how small the time interval, something is happening. astronomical event new.
This fact may not seem so surprising at first glance, given the infinite cosmic immensity, but it becomes much more interesting when we think that part of these phenomena is occurring in our own Solar System.
Adding this to the unpredictability of cosmic phenomena, one of the possible results would certainly be the recent event in the gas giant closest to us, Jupiterwhen amateur observers detected a strong light in the planet’s atmosphere.
Budding astronomers are the first to observe impact on Jupiter
Photo: NASA/ESA/CSA/Jupiter ERS Team/Image processed by Judy Schmidt/Reproduction
On the night of August 29, the night sky as seen from Earth became the setting for a great spectacle for anyone with a telescope within reach. And no matter how technological the observatories of large space agencies are, the first to notice and publish on the subject were small groups of amateur observers.
Projects such as Oases (Organized Autotelescopes for Serendipitous Event Survey) and the Poncots system (Planetary Observation Camera for Optical Transient Surveys) were two of the pioneers in observing the impact that occurred on Jupiter.
The shock wave from what appears to have been a comet or unknown asteroid generated a huge and incredible focus of light that MASA Planetary Log published on its Twitter profile. Check out the images taken by amateur astronomers:
Rare event?
Although it seems unusual to occur in an amateur observation, the impacts occurring on the gaseous planet are not big news. The incredible mass and density make Jupiter the second celestial body with the greatest gravitational pull in our Solar System.
Furthermore, the planet is close to the asteroid belt, making it a giant target for these space rocks. The most interesting thing about the images obtained is that they occurred due to simple chance, when a Chinese astronomer from Henan province was just analyzing Jupiter’s atmosphere.
The memorable impact is a great source of reminder for humanity about how subtle events can happen at any moment in the Universe, being wonderful from a distance, but true catastrophes if witnessed.
