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Something May Have Just Hit Jupiter

Posted by kdawson on from the jumbo-size-clearasil dept.

The blog of Anthony Wesley, an Australian amateur astronomer, has what may be the first photos of a recent comet or asteroid impact on Jupiter, near the south pole. These photos are 11 hours old. The ones at the bottom of the page show three small dark spots in addition to the main dark mark. The Bad Astronomy blog picked up the story a few hours later — but cautions that what we're seeing may not be an impact event. This is all reminiscent of the closely watched impact of comet Shoemaker-Levy on Jupiter in 1994.

18 of 299 comments (clear)

  1. Alternate site for slashdotted article by Romancer · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://www.universetoday.com/2009/07/19/possible-new-impact-on-jupiter/

    --


    ) Human Kind Vs Human Creation
    ) It'd be interesting to see how many humans would survive to serve us.
  2. Just hit jupiter by The_mad_linguist · · Score: 5, Funny

    I mean, just up and hit it. No warning, no reason, just a wild haymaker out of nowhere. Didn't even see the guy.

    Man, that's going to leave a spot.

  3. Dang by rlp · · Score: 5, Funny

    So, I should cancel my plans to land on Europa?

    --
    [Insert pithy quote here]
    1. Re:Dang by Tablizer · · Score: 5, Funny

      Something also embedded into Uranus. Good luck with that ;-P

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
  4. I just hand an thought... by s0litaire · · Score: 5, Funny
    ...It's nearly 2010...

    and a dark spot is noticed on Jupiter...

    Now where did i put that monolith...

    --
    Laters Sol "Have you found the secrets of the universe? Asked Zebade "I'm sure I left them here somewhere"
  5. Re:Good to see it doing it's job by networkzombie · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yeah, but if we didn't see this one coming, what if next time the gas giants don't do their job? T-Rex says "Only humans can prevent global extintion level events."

  6. Received transmission: by Chairboy · · Score: 5, Funny

    All these planets are yours
    except Europa
    Attempt no landi- hang on, what the fu#$(@*$&
    NO CARRIER

  7. Re:Or may not have by gammaraybuster · · Score: 5, Interesting

    If it is an impact, then what else is there to compare it to? According to the blogger, there was no sign whatever of the event just 2 days earlier. Can a storm arise that quickly out of nothing? In any case, it seems likely that they will soon be able to determine if it is an impact or not.

  8. Re:Or may not have by Aussie · · Score: 5, Informative

    >An amateur astronomer puts up pictures on his blog and we're comparing it to Shoemaker-Levy?

    Levy is an amateur, his degree is in english lit. He won an amateur astronomers award.

    (what I tried to post last time, bloody web2 crap)

  9. A large dark spot forms on Jupiter... by Junior+J.+Junior+III · · Score: 5, Funny

    And the space station toilet is broken. Coincidence?

    --
    You see? You see? Your stupid minds! Stupid! Stupid!
  10. Re:Good to see it doing it's job by tumutbound · · Score: 5, Funny

    The gas giants are there to act as a magnet for comets/asteroids etc, so they don't end up near us.

    I don't remember that part of Genesis...

    Which part do you remember?

    I remember Phil Collins great drumming and Peter Gabriels vocals. Of course this was the old Genesis not the reformed one.

  11. new site jupiter.samba.org by tridge · · Score: 5, Informative

    Anthony's webserver has been slashdotted, but
    he has copied the files to:

        http://jupiter.samba.org/

    He is now trying to login to his server so he
    can redirect the pages to the above site.

    As well as being an amateur astronomer, Anthony
    is a keen Linux enthusiast. His home built
    telescope is controlled by his Linux box.

    Cheers, Tridge

  12. please use new URL by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Can the slashdot admins please move the link in the story to the new site? I can't even log into my box to put the redirect in place...

    http://jupiter.samba.org/

    Thanks again Tridge, you're a lifesaver

    Anthony

  13. Something May Have Just Hit Jupiter by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Eeriest Slashdot story title of the year?

  14. Re:Good to see it doing it's job by rs79 · · Score: 5, Funny

    " Yes, Phil Collins did great drumming and Peter Gabriel is a great singer, but they are much better apart than they are together. So, the whole Jupiter-Earth combination is kind of an anti-pre-reformed-Genesis."

    Holst that thought.

    --
    Need Mercedes parts ?
  15. Re:Or may not have by init100 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Many people seem to think that amateur is a synonym for incompetent.

  16. Re:Or may not have by Sique · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Or, as the german philosopher Schopenhauer famously put it:

    Dilletants! Dilletants! - so are called those, who are occupied by a Science or an Art out of love to it, per il loro diletto, with disdain by those who do it for profit, because they love only the money which can be earned by it. This disdain is based on the dastard conviction, that nobody would ever seriously take on a subject if not distress, famine, or another greed urges it. The public is of the same spirit and thus has the same opinion: from here comes his respect for "people of the trade", and his mistrust of amateurs. In reality for the amateur the subject is the goal, for the man of the trade as himself it is only means. Only he will carry on with earnest who is immediately interested in the subject and who is occupied with it out of love. From those, not from the paid servants, the greatest has ever started.

    (Sorry for my bad english. I am an amateur after all ;) )

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    .sig: Sique *sigh*
  17. Re:thats nice and all by antonyb · · Score: 5, Funny

    Out of interest, where else have you watched documentaries?

    Ant.