2
$\begingroup$

Why is the storm on Jupiter much stronger than storms on Earth and why don't the storms on Earth get as big as Jupiter's great red spot

Improve this question
$\endgroup$

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
2
$\begingroup$

Basically because Jupiter is a gas giant and thousands of times more massive than the Earth. Everything on Jupiter is on a gigantic scale. The Great Red Spot for instance could accommodate several Earths, so that explains why you couldn't have a storm on Earth which came anywhere near that size. As well as heat from the sun, which is what drives the weather on Earth, Jupiter has a massive internal source of heat.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
7
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ I can't see why this was voted down. $\endgroup$
    – StephenG - Help Ukraine
    Sep 13, 2019 at 12:06
  • 2
    $\begingroup$ There are other considerations as well: Jupiter's rapid rotation (once per 10 hours or so) provided additional energy, while the lack of a solid surface removes a number of effects which tend to damp down storms on Earth after at most a few weeks. $\endgroup$
    – Steve Linton
    Sep 13, 2019 at 12:57
  • $\begingroup$ @StephenG It's a matter of principle with Astronomy Stack users to vote me down, because they know I'm not one of them and have a completely different mind set (thank God!!). The downvoting system is wide open to abuse, which is why I never use it. $\endgroup$
    – Michael Walsby
    Sep 13, 2019 at 14:11
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ @MichaelWalsby I have voted down some of your answers myself and I think many of your answers, while well intentioned, have not been of a good standard. Nonethless this answer seems appropriate to the question to me. $\endgroup$
    – StephenG - Help Ukraine
    Sep 14, 2019 at 2:49
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Michael, I downvote (and upvote) based on the usefulness of an answer. Many of your answers are either wrong, or aren't useful because they're personal opinion rather than providing evidence-based science, and I therefore DV them. Occasionally you post a good answer and I upvote it. This one (IMHO) doesn't deserve a vote either way: it's not wrong, but it doesn't include key details such as the ones @SteveLinton mentions. $\endgroup$
    – Chappo Hasn't Forgotten Monica
    Sep 15, 2019 at 2:10

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .