Monday, June 29, 2026
Science

JWST solves decades-long mystery about why Saturn appears to change its spin

Researchers at Northumbria University have used the most powerful space telescope ever built to answer one of the longest-standing puzzles in planetary science—why does Saturn appear to spin at a different speed depending on how you measure it? The findings, published in the Journal of Geophysical R...

JWST solves decades-long mystery about why Saturn appears to change its spin
Image: Phys.org
Researchers at Northumbria University have used the most powerful space telescope ever built to answer one of the longest-standing puzzles in planetary science—why does Saturn appear to spin at a different speed depending on how you measure it? The findings, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, reveal for the first time the complex patterns of heat and electrically charged particles in Saturn's aurora, and show that the entire system is driven by a self-sustaining feedback loop powered by the planet's own northern lights.

Originally published at Phys.org

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