影片：木星的亮闪

2021年9月17日

Video: Flash on Jupiter
Video Credit & Copyright: T. Humbert, S. Barré, A. Desmougin & D. Walliang (Société Lorraine d’Astronomie), Astroqueyras

Explanation: There has been a flash on Jupiter. A few days ago, several groups monitoring our Solar System’s largest planet noticed a two-second long burst of light. Such flashes have been seen before, with the most famous being a series of impactor strikes in 1994. Then, fragments of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 struck Jupiter leaving dark patches that lasted for months. Since then, at least seven impacts have been recorded on Jupiter — usually discovered by amateur astronomers. In the featured video, variations in the Earth’s atmosphere cause Jupiter’s image to shimmer when, suddenly, a bright flash appears just left of center. Io and its shadow are visible on the right. What hit Jupiter will likely never be known, but considering what we do know of the nearby Solar System, it was likely a piece of rocky and ice — perhaps the size of a bus — that broke off long-ago from a passing comet or asteroid.

Tomorrow’s picture: Rubin’s Galaxy

影片：木星的亮闪
影片提供与版权: T. Humbert, S. Barré, A. Desmougin & D. Walliang (Société Lorraine d’Astronomie)

说明: 木星出现了一例亮闪。数天前，数个监测我们太阳最大行星——木星的团体，发现一个长达2秒的光学亮闪。以前就曾看过木星出现这类的亮闪，其中最著名的案例是1994年因撞击而发出的一系列亮闪。在当时，来自舒梅克-列维9号彗星撞击木星，留下连续数个月可见的暗痕。在那之后，至少记录到7例通常是由业余天文学家发现的木星撞击事件。在这部主题影片里，湍动的地球大气造成木星影像的晃动，然后一例亮闪突然出现在中左侧。在影像的右侧，可见到木卫一和它的影子。我们可能永远不知道，这次撞到木星的是什么，不过依据我们对太阳系这个区域的了解，产生撞击的物体可能是岩石和冰混合的团块，而这块大小与大客车相近的天体，是很久以前从路过的彗星或小行星剥离出来的碎片。

明日的图片: Rubin’s Galaxy