ESPRESSO is an instrument located at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile. The device is mainly used to study exoplanets, i.e. worlds outside the solar system. However, astronomers decided to use them to better understand one of the gas giants of our planetary system. We are talking about Jupiter.
Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and is approximately 11 times larger than Earth. So you can imagine what is happening in its atmosphere and how huge these phenomena are. Astronomers decided to use the ESPRESSO instrument on the VLT to study the gas giant’s winds.
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ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) /Iztok Boncina/ESO /press materials
Using ESPRESSO, scientists were able to make precise measurements of the wind in Jupiter’s atmosphere. Research has shown that they blow at speeds between 60 and 428 km/s. The results obtained were compared with other data collected previously. Mainly using observatories located in space.
We measured wind speeds to within a few meters per second, while Jupiter at the equator rotates at over 10 kilometers per second. Furthermore, since it has a gaseous and not rocky structure, the rotation speed changes, among other things. depending on the latitude.
Pedro Machado
The results obtained will allow a better understanding of Jupiter’s atmosphere and the processes that occur in it. Scientists also believe that ESPRESSO could be used to explore other planets.
The solar system has four gas giants. In addition to Jupiter, these are Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Scientists believe that the ESPRESSO instrument can also be used successfully to study the atmosphere of the other planets mentioned, which will also allow a better understanding of the phenomena that occur there. The first to go is Saturn, famous for its rings.
ESPRESSO is a specialized spectrograph mounted on the Very Large Telescope a few years ago. The first tests of the instrument were carried out in 2016. The installation on the VLT took place a year later.
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