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Open AccessAstronomical Observations in Support of Planetary Entry-Probes to the Outer Planets
A team of Earth-based astronomical observers supporting a giant planet entry-probe event substantially enhances the scientific return of the mission. An observers’ team provides spatial and temporal context, a...
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Article
Atmospheric Science Questions for a Uranian Probe
The Ice Giants represent a unique and relatively poorly characterized class of planets that have been largely unexplored since the brief Voyager 2 flyby in the late 1980s. Uranus is particularly enigmatic, due...
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Article
Open AccessAn intense narrow equatorial jet in Jupiter’s lower stratosphere observed by JWST
The atmosphere of Jupiter has east–west zonal jets that alternate as a function of latitude as tracked by cloud motions at tropospheric levels. Above and below the cold tropopause at ~100 mbar, the equatorial ...
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Article
Spectral determination of the colour and vertical structure of dark spots in Neptune’s atmosphere
Previous observations of dark vortices in Neptune’s atmosphere, such as Voyager 2’s Great Dark Spot (1989), have been made in only a few broad-wavelength channels, hampering efforts to determine these vortices...
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Article
Author Correction: Unexpected long-term variability in Jupiter’s tropospheric temperatures
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Article
Unexpected long-term variability in Jupiter’s tropospheric temperatures
An essential component of planetary climatology is knowledge of the tropospheric temperature field and its variability. Previous studies of Jupiter hinted at non-seasonal periodic behaviour, as well as the pre...
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Author Correction: Fluctuations in Jupiter’s equatorial stratospheric oscillation
A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-021-01362-8.
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Article
Fluctuations in Jupiter’s equatorial stratospheric oscillation
The equatorial stratospheres of Earth, Jupiter and Saturn all exhibit a remarkable periodic oscillation of their temperatures and winds with height. Earth’s quasi-biennial oscillation and Saturn’s quasi-period...
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Article
Spitzer’s Solar System studies of asteroids, planets and the zodiacal cloud
In its 16 years of scientific measurements, the Spitzer Space Telescope performed a number of groundbreaking and key infrared measurements of Solar System objects near and far. In this second of two Review Art...
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Open AccessIce Giant Circulation Patterns: Implications for Atmospheric Probes
Atmospheric circulation patterns derived from multi-spectral remote sensing can serve as a guide for choosing a suitable entry location for a future in situ probe mission to the Ice Giants. Since the Voyager-2 fl...
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Disruption of Saturn’s quasi-periodic equatorial oscillation by the great northern storm
The equatorial middle atmospheres of the Earth 1 , Jupiter 2 and Saturn 3,4 all exhibit a remarkably simil...
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Article
Open AccessStrong Temporal Variation Over One Saturnian Year: From Voyager to Cassini
Here we report the combined spacecraft observations of Saturn acquired over one Saturnian year (~29.5 Earth years), from the Voyager encounters (1980–81) to the new Cassini reconnaissance (2009–10). The combin...
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Article
Equatorial winds on Saturn and the stratospheric oscillation
The stability over time of the zonal jets on the giant planets has been debated. An analysis of observations from the Cassini spacecraft reveals an acceleration of wind velocities in Saturn’s high-altitude equ...
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Article
Ground-Based Observational Support for Spacecraft Exploration of the Outer Planets
This report presents both a retrospective of ground-based support for spacecraft missions to the outer solar system and a perspective of support for future missions. Past support is reviewed in a series of cas...
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Review of Knowledge Prior to the Cassini-Huygens Mission and Concurrent Research
The scientific achievements of the Cassini-Huygens mission have been based on previous decades of investigations from ground-based observations, an intensive 2-year time span of exploration by three spacecraft...
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Article
Semi-annual oscillations in Saturn’s low-latitude stratospheric temperatures
Both Earth and Jupiter have equatorial oscillations in their atmospheres, with two-year and four-year periodicity respectively. Two groups working independently now report a related phenomenon on Saturn. Orton et...
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Article
The quasiquadrennial oscillation of Jupiter's equatorial stratosphere
A NEW 11-year record of Jupiter's stratospheric temperature1 shows an equatorial temperature oscillation with an apparent period of 4–5 years. Here we compare this oscillation to two long-period oscillations of z...
