Optical and Infrared Jupiter

Two images of Jupiter side by side. On the left is Jupiter with its red spot and swirling brown, beige, and white cloud bands. On the right is Jupiter in the same position but with only a few bands showing yellow and dark orange against an orange background, with no red spot visible.

Left: Optical image of Jupiter taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. Right: SOFIA image of Jupiter demonstrating the variation in its brightness temperature with latitude. The two images show Jupiter in approximately the same orientation. Image credit: Left: NASA/ESA; Right: NASA/SOFIA/de Pater et al., 2021

SOFIA, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, was a Boeing 747SP aircraft modified to carry a 2.7-meter (106-inch) reflecting telescope (with an effective diameter of 2.5 meters or 100 inches). Flying into the stratosphere at 38,000-45,000 feet put SOFIA above 99 percent of Earth’s infrared-blocking atmosphere, allowing astronomers to study the solar system and beyond in ways that are not possible with ground-based telescopes. SOFIA was a joint project of NASA and the German Space Agency at DLR.