Pinoy finds new red spot on Jupiter

A Cebuano amateur astronomer and astrophotographer gained recognition from the local and international astronomy communities, including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States, for his recent discovery of a new red spot on planet Jupiter.

Christopher Go, a member of the Astronomical League of the Philippines (ALP) living in Mandaue City, found the spot on the planet using an 11-inch telescope and a CCD camera on Feb. 28 at 3:37 Philippine Standard Time (Feb. 27 at 19:37 Universal Time).

Go’s discovery, as captured in his photographs, was featured on various astronomy websites, such as www.spaceweather.com (on March 6), NASA’s website, Sky and Telescope (March 6 news) and www.space.com, among others.

In a NASA press release issued March 6 featured Go’s discovery and the photographs he took. NASA acknowledged them as among the latest important developments in astronomy.

NASA has officially called the new red spot "Oval BA," or the Red Spot Jr. Thought to be a storm over the planet’s cloud cover, Oval BA is about half the size of the famous Great Red Spot (GRS) and almost the same color.

Oval BA first appeared in the year 2000, when three smaller spots collided and merged. A similar merger centuries ago may have created the original GRS, which is a storm twice as wide as our planet and at least 300 years old, according to NASA news.

"At first oval BA remained white — the same color as the storms that combined to create it," Go said. "But, in recent months, things began to change, the oval was white in November 2005. It slowly turned brown in December 2005 and a red a few weeks ago. Now it’s the same color as the GRS."

"Wow," exclaimed Dr. Glenn Orton, an astronomer at JPL who specializes in studies of storms on Jupiter and other giant planets upon seeing the photos. "This is convincing. We’ve been monitoring Jupiter for years to see if Oval BA would turn red — and it finally seems to be happening," he said although he preferred calling it as "the not-so-Great Red Spot."

Curiously, no one knows precisely why the GRS itself is red. But Go’s discovery is now the focus of attention of astronomers, who have acknowledged the GRS as the most powerful storm on Jupiter, rising eight kilometers above the planetary clouds and providing the most interesting view of Jupiter.

With knowledge of the planet now expanded, Go’s discovery has put the Philippines on the map of the world’s astronomical community.

Go has been an amateur astronomer since 1986 and an astrophotographer since 1990. He began his career in astronomy during the last apparition of Halley’s Comet in 1998, the same year he married his wife, Vicky.

He organized the University of San Carlos Astronomical Society (USCAS) and went to Davao City to view his first total solar eclipse on March 18.

Go was also took photographs of the partial solar eclipse in Cebu City on June 11, 2002 and captured on film the Mercury and Venus Transit during the celestial event. He also took pictures of the sun’s spots, the moon and Saturn’s Red Corner. — Freeman News Service