Jupiter’s monster storm not just wide but surprisingly deep

By MARCIA DUNN
AP Aerospace Writer

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, a storm so big it could swallow Earth, extends surprisingly deep beneath the planet’s cloud tops. NASA’s Juno spacecraft has discovered that the monster storm, though shrinking, still has a depth of between 200 miles and 300 miles. Scientists reported Thursday that the Great Red Spot is probably the tallest storm studied so far at Jupiter. Thousands of storms are constantly raging across the gas giant. Next up for Juno will be measuring the depth of the polar cyclones. Launched in 2011, Juno has been orbiting the solar system’s largest planet since 2016. NASA recently extended the mission by another four years.