When the animation starts, Io is just entering transit on the left edge of the planet. After a few frames Io disappears, but you can just see the Great Red Spot (GRS) come into view. Io's shadow appears just above the GRS in the next frame or two and then races across the planet. The distance between the GRS and the shadow continues to increase. Then finally in the last two frames you can see Io emerge from in front of the planet. At that time, the GRS is near the center of the planet and the shadow is about 1/2 between the GRS and the right edge of the planet.

The atmosphere of Jupiter was very active when these images were taken. You can see several eddies in the northern belt, white streaks around the GRS and several white ovals. The larger file shows these details much better.   Click here to go back.