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The Great White Spot and disturbances in Saturn's equatorial atmosphere during 1990

Abstract

A giant storm, the Great White Spot, erupted at the end of September 1990 as a localized, bright cloud system close to Saturn's equator. Its evolution produced a complex planetary disturbance which affected the whole equatorial region a month later. Similar spots have appeared approximately once every saturnian year (about 30 Earth years), implying that a seasonal change—in solar heating, for example—may be responsible for their occurrence.

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Sanchez-Lavega, A., Colas, F., Lecacheux, J. et al. The Great White Spot and disturbances in Saturn's equatorial atmosphere during 1990. Nature 353, 397–401 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1038/353397a0

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