NASA's Hubble Tracks New Decagon Encircling Saturn’s South Pole

Summary
10-sided wave appears to strengthen in year-over-year Hubble observations
Stunning portraits of the gas giants in our solar system over the last several decades can make these planets seem like familiar, unchanging worlds. Jupiter’s Great Red Spot and Saturn’s famous northern hexagon are recognizable features that have persisted for years, reinforcing that message.
However, astronomers know that these planets are actually constantly in motion, changing much like our own Earth. The latest major discovery from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope offers a striking example: a newly formed, 10-sided atmospheric wave, called a decagon, encircling Saturn’s south pole.
Researchers are just beginning to piece together the history of this new feature and investigate what its evolution can reveal about the dynamic atmospheres of gas giant planets.
Full Article
Recent observations with NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope have revealed a giant, evolving, 10-sided atmospheric wave encircling Saturn's south pole. This discovery marks the first time a large, regular-sided jet pattern has been observed in the planet's southern hemisphere. The feature appears remarkably similar to Saturn's famous hexagon at its northern pole, but is also distinctly different, suggesting scientists may be witnessing a new atmospheric phenomenon develop on the iconic gas giant. The results published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances. By piecing together several ...Visit NASA Science to view the full news release including article text and associated Hubble imagery, graphics, scientific visualizations, videos, captions, text descriptions, and other information.
News releases highlighting the discoveries of NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope are produced for NASA by the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland, under NASA Contract NAS5-26555. News release content is developed by the News Team in STScI’s Office of Public Outreach.
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