Jupiter Section - Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers

Jupiter has a long history of surprising scientists – all the way back to 1610 when Galileo Galilei found the first moons beyond Earth. That discovery changed the way we see the universe. Jupiter is, by far, the largest planet in the solar system – more than twice as massive as all the other planets combined.

Jupiter's familiar stripes and swirls are actually cold, windy clouds of ammonia and water, floating in an atmosphere of hydrogen and helium. Jupiter’s iconic Great Red Spot is a giant storm bigger than Earth that has raged for hundreds of years.

Jupiter Blog

Jupiter Map Animation

6/24/2026

The Japan ALPO Jupiter section has assembled a striking animated map of Jupiter for the 2025–26 apparition that beautifully captures evolving cloud detail and rotation. Compiled by S. Mizumoto using high-quality L3 maps, the video highlights subtle belt/zone changes and transient features that are easy to miss in single frames. This animation is a great resource for both visual appreciation and comparative study, enabling one to appreciate feature drift, compare morphology between rotations, and illustrate seasonal trends in presentations and observing reports. Kudos to ALPO-Japan for making these maps accessible; they’re a vivid reminder of how coordinated imaging form the amateur community and careful map assembly deepen our understanding of Jupiter.

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Jupiter News Headlines

Io Covers Callisto
10/14/2026

Jupiter's moon Io passed directly in front of Callisto, creating a rare Galilean satellite mutual occultation visible across the Americas in the predawn sky. The alignment occurred during the current mutual event season when Earth crosses the orbital plane of Jupiter's satellites. Visual observers and planetary imagers tracked the partial drop in Callisto's brightness as the smaller, volcanic moon traversed the face of the larger, cratered outer satellite.

Scientists analyzing the Jovian system confirmed that Jupiter's moon Europa likely hides a massive global ocean underneath its heavily fractured ice shell. Driven by constant tidal heating from Jupiter's gravity, this completely dark, subsurface environment is estimated to contain more liquid water than all of Earth's oceans combined. The data will aid NASA's Europa Clipper cruise ahead of its 2030 arrival.

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Apparition Highlights

Gary Walker

254mm APM-LZOS Refractor, QHY5III200

This late April capture is packed with classic 2025–26 Jovian detail: Oval BA can be seen near the meridian, flanked by five of the long‑lived SSTB ovals (A2, A3, A4, A5, A7 from right to left). The NEB shows two intense barges, and the revived NTB continues to be a pale ocher in color.

Galilean Moon Events

Moon	Date (UT)	Event
Callisto	2026-10-14 01:14	Occultation-Disappearance
Europa	2026-10-14 04:35	Eclipse-Disappearance
Callisto	2026-10-14 06:08	Occultation-Reappearance
Europa	2026-10-14 09:38	Occultation-Reappearance
Io	2026-10-14 11:53	Shadow-Ingress
Io	2026-10-14 12:57	Transit-Ingress
Io	2026-10-14 14:09	Shadow-Egress
Io	2026-10-14 15:14	Transit-Egress
Io	2026-10-15 09:00	Eclipse-Disappearance
Io	2026-10-15 12:25	Occultation-Reappearance
Europa	2026-10-15 22:48	Shadow-Ingress

Complete Galilean Moon events can be found
in issues of Sky & Telescope

Event Calendar

2026-11-02 20:45
Moon occults Jupiter (Australia, Indonesia, southern India and Malaysia)

2026-11-17
Jupiter reaches western quadrature

2026-11-30 07:15
Moon occults Jupiter (Argentina, Chile, Antarctica)

2027-02-11 00:21
Jupiter at opposition

Full Jupiter Section Calendar