Did You Know: Space – Why is Jupiter striped?
Jupiter is the biggest planet in the solar system. It has several stripes, or bands, of different colors. These bands are caused by chemicals in Jupiter’s clouds and also by winds that whip around the planet, moving in different directions.
Rapid rotation
Jupiter is the fastest spinning planet in the solar system. It takes less than 10 hours to make one complete turn, or rotation
Strong winds
Jupiter is a very windy and stormy planet. Its winds are created deep inside the planet and blow across it at hundreds of miles an hour
Great Red Spot
The red spot on Jupiter is a huge spinning storm that has been raging for hundreds of years. It is the biggest storm in the solar system.
Icy clouds
Jupiter’s north pole is covered in icy storm clouds. The pole also has massive light shows, which are similar to the auroras that are seen on Earth.
Which other planets are stormy?
Great White Spot
Huge thunderstorms raging on Saturn show up every few years as the Great White Spot.
They often spread right around the planet.
Great Dark Spots
Neptune is the windiest planet in the solar system. It has giant dark spots, which are gigantic spinning storms, like hurricanes.
These spots will often suddenly appear and then disappear again.