New Delhi, India

Scientists have been observing Jupiter embroiled in a massive storm, which has continued for at least 350 years, and now their attention has been diverted towards its shrinking enormous red oval. 

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The oval, known as the Great Red Spot, is visible from Earth and is located in the southern hemisphere of the planet. 

This meteorological feature is spread over an area of 10,000 miles wide and the intense anticyclone has been blowing at a speed which is more than 200 miles per hour in a counterclockwise direction. This is the largest windstorm ever recorded in our solar system.

What has now left the scientists more puzzled is the shrinking of the Great Red Spot.

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Even though the latitudinal reach of the storm has remained consistent, it has contracted longitudinally dramatically.

In the late 19th century, the Great Red Spot extended to more than 40 degrees. However, in 2016, NASA’s Juno spacecraft observed that it had shrunk to 14 degrees. 

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The study's lead author and Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences PhD student Caleb Keaveney said, “Many people have looked at the Great Red Spot over the last 200 years and were as fascinated by it as I am."

“A lot of those people were not professional astronomers – they were just passionate and curious. That, plus the curiosity I see in people when I talk about my work, makes me feel like part of something bigger than myself," he added.

Jupiter's Great Red Spot remains shrouded in mystery

Even after years of rigorous study, the Great Red Spot has remained a topic of intrigue among scientists.

Astronomers have failed to determine when the spot was formed and how and also why it has a red colour.

The research was conducted by Keaveney with Gary Lackmann of North Carolina State University and Timothy Dowling of the University of Louisville.

Watch: Scientists say the Earth's core is behaving oddly. Here's why

The team's focus turned towards understanding how the Great Red Spot is getting impacted by smaller and transient storms. 

To understand this, researchers utilised the atmospheric model known as the Explicit Planetary Isentropic-Coordinate (EPIC) model. This model was developed in the 1990s by Dowling for planetary applications. 

In the analysis, it was found that the Great Red Spot is strengthened by other storms which leads to its expansion. 

“We found through numerical simulations that by feeding the Great Red Spot a diet of smaller storms, as has been known to occur on Jupiter, we could modulate its size,” Keaveney said.

(With inputs from agencies)