Look a little closer
On the surface of Jupiter lies a massive red swirling storm known as the Great Red Spot. The storm is larger than the diameter of Earth — big enough to swallow our entire planet with room to spare.
The Great Red Spot is essentially a colossal storm system, similar in nature to a giant hurricane, with winds that howl at hundreds of kilometers per hour without ever letting up. Humans have observed this storm through telescopes for at least 350 years.
Because Jupiter, unlike Earth, has no solid surface — it's a gas giant — a storm of this scale can persist for centuries without friction to slow it down. However, recent observations suggest the Great Red Spot has been gradually shrinking in size.
Scientists believe the storm could eventually disappear entirely, though exactly when that might happen is difficult to predict. Even so, the Great Red Spot remains one of the most famous weather phenomena in the entire solar system.
