Weizmann Institute researchers and their colleagues set an
upper limit for the thickness of jet streams on Uranus and Neptune
What is the long-range weather forecast for the giant
planets Uranus and Neptune? These planets are home to extreme winds blowing at
speeds of over 1000 km/hour, hurricane-like storms as large around as Earth,
immense weather systems that last for years and fast-flowing jet streams. Both
planets feature similar climates, despite the fact that Uranus is tipped on its
side with the pole facing the sun during winter. The winds on these planets
have been observed on their outer surfaces; but to get a grasp of their weather
systems, we need to have an idea of what is going on underneath. For instance,
do the atmospheric patterns arise from deep down in the planet, or are they
confined to shallower processes nearer the surface? New research at the
Weizmann Institute of Science, the University of Arizona and Tel Aviv
University, which was published online today in Nature, shows that the wind
patterns seen on the surface can extend only so far down on these two worlds.