It seems that Jupiter is not the only planet to host large storms. A new study by astronomers from the Universities of California and Michigan in the United States has shown that Saturn also has intense megatempeste, the effects of which remain in the planet’s atmosphere for hundreds of years. According to the authors, megastorms usually occur every 20 to 30 years. They are similar to hurricanes on Earth, but, of course, they are significantly larger and they have one important difference from those on our planet: No one knows for sure what causes these storms on Saturn. To study them, the team worked with radio waves, which allow us to study what is under the layer of clouds that cover the gas giants. Saturn’s emissions revealed something intriguing: There were anomalies in the concentration of ammonia gas, and this appears to be related to the occurrence of megastorms in the planet’s northern hemisphere. Saturn’s atmosphere is mainly composed of hydrogen and helium, but it also contains small quantities of methane, water and ammonia. According to the team, ammonia is found in lower concentrations in mid-latitudes, just beneath a layer of ammonia and ice clouds. At lower altitudes, 100 to 200 kilometers in the atmosphere, it shows even greater concentration.
These variations appear to be the result of the transport of ammonia from the upper atmosphere to the lower atmosphere by processes precipitation and evaporation, which can last for hundreds of years. So, even though Saturn and Jupiter are made up of hydrogen, the two gas giants have big differences. While Jupiter has tropospheric anomalies related to its bands, these have nothing to do with storms, as happens on Saturn. The significant variations between the two could help scientists understand the processes behind megastorms, while also helping them understand them in exoplanets.