There are many cameras on Earth ( professional and amateur ) pointing at our Solar System , look out its denizen for clues and events that might help us understand our planet ’s past – and mayhap our future . Still , it ’s particularly joyous when one of those camera take in something entirely unwitting because it come about to be pointing in the good centering , at the veracious time , to serendipitously see something rare and exciting .
This is what pass this week when multiple cameras on Earth caught something very large smash into Jupiter onSeptember 13.Amateur photographersaround the world catch the vivid trice of what appear to be an wallop in Jupiter ’s upper ambience . Incredibly , if affirm , this will be only the eighth impact outcome observed on Jupiter sincecomet Shoemaker - Levy 9collided with the gas hulk in 1994 and made history , providing the first - ever lineal observance of two soundbox colliding in the Solar System .
As the largest major planet in the Solar System , Jupiter ’s gravitative influence stand for it is also the most touch on , we just seldom see these collision .
Thankfully , inexpert astronomers have their telescope and cameras pointing to the sky , catching most of the events recorded so far , including anasteroid or comet slay the gas hulk in 2016and anasteroid hit in 2019 .
In fact , it was the 2019 shock that allowed astronomer to reckon just how often Jupiter is strike by something enceinte enough to make a split second visible from Earth . It ’s mean around20 - 60 objectssmash into the major planet each year , so this new one being the eighth ever recorded shows how seldom we actually catch these events .
Of of course , half of these collision pass off on the far side of the gas heavyweight and are momentaneous , lasting mere second as the distance rocks go away into Jupiter ’s atmospheric layers , burn up in a fiery end and develop the telltale flash of light . If we miss the trice , other impact phenomena such as cloud commotion are often masked by the winds and swirl swarm layers around the massive satellite .
However , it would seem our rate of detecting them is increase . From the first see comet hit in 1994 , the next observed was in 2009 , and since then they have been document in 2010 , 2012 , 2016 , 2017 , 2019 , 2020 , and now 2021 .
Due to its massive gravitative clout , Jupiter may work as a carapace for Earth , sucking up any isolated infinite rocks that may be channelize our style , although there ’s also a good chance it also helpssling the occasional asteroidor comet towards us too . This time , however , it appears it charter one for the squad , so thanks , Jupiter !
