Epic Alien Storm on Saturn -- Captured by Cassini Space Probe

reply to post by galactix


here : vortex shedding

Originally posted by galactix
reply to post by galactix

 

here : vortex shedding

Well that would be cool as hell, if we could actually witness at least a part of this process...
Although, I don't understand how this could happen on a rocky planet like ours
Thanks for the pic!

Originally posted by drakus

Although, I don't understand how this could happen on a rocky planet like ours

no. not on a planet with a solidified crust on it.

but the earth did not always have a solid crust and our moon could have been birthed at that time.

u know that recent data shows that the moon is moving away from us, right? this goes contrary to predictions based on the idea that gravity bonds the moon to us, cuz if this were true then the geoatmospheric friction (the only other force at play apparently) experienced by the moon should cause it to drift closer, not further away.

weird, huh?

reply to post by galactix


The moon has a lot of mass, it's orbit around earth has quite a bit of centrifugal force pulling it away not to mention its speed of travel. Now Mars with its tiny moons is actually pulling them into its Roche limit, one day Phobos will explode and rain down onto the surface of Mars, or create an ultra thin ring like Jupiter and Uranus has. The moon has no chance of that ever happening here.

In some 15 billion years from now the moon will be about 60% further away than it is now, it will make one single orbit in one single earth day calculated to be about 55 earth days now, the day and month will reach an equilibrium and no further slowing of earth's rotation or the moon's orbit will change from that point. Of course, the earth/moon system will not last that long as the sun would have consumed them in less than half of that time.

We live in a particular point in time that the moon is the same size as the sun so we experience eclipses, in a billion years or so from now the moon will be smaller than the sun from our vantage here. A billion years ago the moon was much closer, the days were shorter, and the year had more days, while the moon orbited around earth much faster. Tidal friction has occurred but that is not a steady or precisely predictable smooth math to put numbers to. We just know it to be true through archeological studies of time bands in ancient rock layers and ice cores.

Originally posted by galactix
reply to post by drakus

 

there are some who think that gas giants birth their moons, rather than capture them. the idea is that higher density matter accumulates on the 'surface' as the internal planetary reactions continue. when enuf matter accumulates, the body lifts off the surface and drifts away to become a moon.

this would explain why our moon is made of 'earth' stuff.

it would also explain why the moon's orbital diameter is increasing rather than decreasing.

there are some who say that the 'red spot' on Jupiter will someday be a new moon.

a curios idea , to be sure.

That's a great theory considering it came from arm chair scientist..

NOT