Animating JUPITER

As Jupiter begins to get higher in the sky as seen from the UK, its imaging potential continually improves. By photographing the planet with a high-frame-rate camera, it’s possible to record the state of the gas giant’s atmosphere. But you can also stitch together sequences of these images, creating animations showing how the planet rotates. These can be used to clarify atmospheric details as they turn with the planet, or reveal the orbital dance of the four bright Galilean moons. In this article we look at the techniques to make your own Jovian animations, from capture through to the final build.

Capturing your images

A little planning will ensure you capture the best images to animate

Jupiter is at its best when the atmosphere it’s viewed through is stable. Atmospheric stability is affected by the weather, altitude of the object and the presence of the jetstream. You can determine when the most promising conditions are due from meteorological forecasts. Active fronts and deep low-pressure systems tend to cause instability, while high pressure tends to produce the most stable conditions. Weather dominated by high pressure with an absence of an.