Science

Jupiter has a Great Blue Spot too, thanks to its weird magnetic field

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Jupiter's magnetic field

This bizarre map of Jupiter’s magnetic field reveals a Great Blue Spot (lower right)

Moore et al/Nature

By Andy Coghlan

Everyone knows Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, but now it has a Great Blue Spot too. It plays a key role in operation of the planet’s uniquely-weird magnetic field, as shown in the graphic above.

The spot was discovered when astronomers analysed the first direct measurements of the magnetic fields within the planet. The readings were captured by NASA’s Juno space probe, which has been orbiting the planet since July 2016.

Unlike Earth’s highly uniform field with poles …