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You may not recognize it at first glance, but this image shows the planet Jupiter.
Hubble observed this giant planet with its unique ability to capture the ultraviolet light seen here.
Thirty years ago this week, fragments of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 slammed into Jupiter. To follow this historic cosmic event in sequence, Hubble made several observations, including this ultraviolet image of the aftermath of the impact.
The collision points in this image appear very dark in ultraviolet light because a large amount of dust has accumulated in Jupiter's stratosphere and this dust absorbs sunlight. By tracking the evolution of these features, scientists have been able to track winds in the stratosphere!
Jupiter's moon Io is the dark spot just above the center of the planet. Dark spots near the bottom of Jupiter show comet impact scars.
Image description:
The large purple circle, Jupiter imaged in ultraviolet light, glows against black space. Faint atmospheric bands and a black dot with the moon Io can be seen above the center. The dark spots near the bottom of Jupiter are impact scars from comet fragments.
Image credits: Hubble Space Telescope Comet Team
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