WASHINGTON (AP) - Neptune’s glowing auroras are captured in the best detail yet by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.
Neptune’s auroras are captured in great detail by NASA’s Webb telescope
WASHINGTON (AP) - Neptune’s glowing auroras are captured in the best detail yet by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.
Hints of auroras were first faintly detected in ultraviolet light during a flyby of the Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1989. Webb captured Neptune’s shimmering lights in infrared light, providing direct evidence they exist.
NASA released the images on Wednesday, and the results were published in the journal Nature Astronomy.
Auroras on any planet occur when electrically charged particles from space enter and collide with molecules in the atmosphere, creating a series of reactions that emits light.