NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has delivered its most detailed infrared view of Neptune‘s auroras to date, offering new clarity on the planet’s atmosphere. Using the NIRCam instrument, researchers captured images in July 2022 and August 2023, revealing Neptune’s auroras at both poles, particularly striking in the northern hemisphere.
The data confirms the presence of high-altitude clouds and temperature shifts in Neptune’s stratosphere. It also picks up subtle variations in methane levels, helping to trace atmospheric circulation. These are features that earlier telescopes, neither space-based nor ground-based, could capture with the same resolution.
What makes Webb so effective is its ability to detect Neptune’s thermal emissions directly. Neptune’s distance makes it a tough target for visible light observations; there’s not much sunlight to work with. Infrared imaging sidesteps that problem by picking up the planet’s heat, as opposed to just what it reflects. That gives NASA researchers a much cleaner view of how Neptune’s atmosphere behaves.
Building on the New Observations
The improved detail enables more accurate mapping of Neptune’s auroral zones and offers better temporal resolution to monitor changes over time. These findings are expected to refine existing models of magnetospheric behaviour and energy transfer in planetary atmospheres.
Webb’s images also provide a baseline for long-term monitoring and comparisons with other gas giants, such as Jupiter and Uranus. Plans are already underway to follow up with further studies using Webb’s spectroscopic instruments, which will take a closer look at Neptune’s atmospheric chemistry and circulation.
All data from these observations is now publicly available through the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes, supporting broader collaborative research into the dynamics of the outer solar system.
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