Neptune's Atmosphere
Clouds of BlueNeptune's atmosphere is made up of hydrogen, helium, and methane. Like Earth's atmosphere, Neptune's has clouds and storm systems that revolve around the planet, but with wind speeds of 300 m/sec (700 mi/hr), and clouds of frozen methane. |
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 160k GIF - 21k JPEG NASA Press Release #P34648 |
The "Great Dark Spot" discovered by Voyager 2 is a storm system that resembles Jupiter's Red Spot, and is surrounded by white cirrus clouds of frozen methane. |
Changes In Cloud Structure
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| These images of the Great Dark Spot were taken by Voyager
2 over a 4 1/2 day period at intervals of 18 hours. As shown on the
left, a "tail" of the dark spot separated into individual
spots that moved westward. The Great Dark Spot may have an overall counterclockwise
rotation as suggested by the lighter toned clouds surrounding the main
spot.
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