THE GREAT RED SPOT:
       Jupiter's surface is covered in dark "belts" with lighter zones between them. These areas are created by atmospheric movements. Along these belts and zones, are light and dark oval spots that are storm winds. The largest of these is called, The Great Red Spot. It is a large, oval mark. Many astronomers believe that the spot is an intense atmospheric disturbance similar to a hurricane. The Red Spot spans 23,000 km eastward and 12,400 km in the north south direction. This spot is bounded on the south by an eastward wind and a strong westward wind on the north. The Red Spot may have been formed when a large convective cell or a warm bubble was carried up from below. The size is enormous. Three Earths could fit side by side in this storm without even touching the edges!

       The spot drifts constantly for an interval of time and then accelerates or decelerates and settles to move at another constant rate. The Red Spot exists in a desiccated atmosphere where the water has condensed out. It is not free to drift along, but is trapped in the described wind field.

       The color of the spot is different from the equatorial region which is also a reddish area. The Great Red Spot absorbs more of the blue, violet, and UV light. Sometimes the spot is small and pink, and other times it is large and bright red.

       An interesting fact on the Great Red Spot: Scientists are not certain why the Spot has lasted for centuries. Most other storms come and go, but the Red Spot seems to be permanent. Scientists also wonder about its movements. It moves east and west but never north and south.

This picture is a diagram of Jupiter's ring structure and where the inner satellites are.

JUPITER'S RING:
       Like Saturn, Jupiter also has rings. In 1979, the Voyager I discovered that a thin ring circles Jupiter. Jupiter's ring consists of several very thin rings that look like a single ring. It is much darker and smaller than Saturn's. Particles in the ring actually do not stay there for very long because Jupiter's atmosphere and magnetic fields drag them downwards. Two small satellites that orbit within the ring, Metis and Adrastea, may supply new particles. While its rings are not as visible as Saturn's, Jupiter's rings are still very complex. The larger density particles are along the outer edge and decreases inwards. The rings appear about twenty times brighter in scattered light than in reflected. The inner boundary of the ring is diffuse, meaning that the material is spiraling in to the planet's atmosphere. One can not distinguish the composition of the ring. It may have been formed from a residue of debris or it could be composed of a cometary material. Future analysis of the ring system is needed to determine the interactions and compositions.