Supporting the JWST Jupiter Campaign in 2026
JWST is about to conduct its most comprehensive Jupiter campaign since 2022, and we're calling for amateur observers to share their images.
Back in 2022, during the first few months of science from JWST, we had several groups exploring Jupiter and the jovian system all at the same time. Whilst each group was working independently, we met regularly and shared our results, working in synergy to maximise the science return. We had NIRCam images of Jupiter’s storms, jet streams and auroras; NIRSpec and MIRI spectroscopy looking at the Great Red Spot and Southern Auroras (sensing from the neutral atmosphere high into the ionosphere); and a variety of spectroscopic maps of Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. This treasure trove all landed on Earth within a few weeks of the start of JWST’s science phase, and being part of the analysis team was an amazing experience.
JWST Observations in 2026
Fast forward two years. Having learned how to get the best out of the JWST instruments for this big, bright, moving and rotating planet, several of these overlapping teams were proposing for new data in JWST’s “Cycle 4.” In March 2025, we learned that four independent projects had been awarded time for 2026. This comes to about 65 hours of time, all dedicated to Jupiter’s atmosphere and ionosphere, and I don’t expect it’ll happen again soon!
My programme to explore the temperature, gas, and cloud contrasts associated with Jupiter’s belts and zones with MIRI – 6865 – Feb 27th-Feb 28th
Mike Wong’s programme to study Oval BA with NIRCam, NIRSpec and MIRI – 6840 – Feb 20th – Feb 22nd.
Pablo Rodriguez-Ovalle’s programme to study stratospheric composition with MIRI, and particularly tracking the chemical left-overs from Comet SL9 in the 90s – 8173 – Feb 20th
Paola Tiranti’s programme to study the wavy patterns in the near-equatorial ionosphere with NIRSpec above the Great Red Spot – 8147 – Mar 21st - Mar 22nd.
With the immense help of the JWST schedulers, we were able to find compromises that meant that all four of these programmes could be scheduled within a few weeks of each other. That’ll maximise the opportunities for synergistic science, and might provide the best characterisation of Jupiter that we’ll ever get with JWST. For example, the MIRI and NIRSpec fields-of-view are tiny (3-6 arcseconds square), so having the global NIRCam imaging close by provides excellent context. Even then, we rely on the pointing of the observatory to accurately determine what we’re looking at.
The date ranges given above are preliminary - as we get closer, the times will be refined as the observations are put onto the weekly schedule (you can access them any time by clicking the links above and looking for “Visit Status Information”). You can also check out the weekly observing schedules, or check our “Space Telescope Live” to understand what it’s looking at right now. There’s a little headache with the launch of Artemis II (which might disrupt schedules with the Deep Space Network), so watch this space for exact timings.
Coordination with Juno and Earth-Based Observers
Even better, the Juno mission is still delivering astonishing data after almost a decade in orbit. We tried to schedule the JWST observations as close as possible to its 81st and 82nd perijoves (February 25th and March 29th, respectively), so that we might be able to connect the JWST data to Juno’s microwave, UV, infrared, and visible images, as well as its radio occultations to measure ionospheric electrons and neutral atmospheric temperatures and densities.
But even with Juno and JWST, we still struggle to provide context to the in-depth observations: the spectrometers (integral field units) are amazing, but only cover a small area, so we need global views to be sure that what we were looking at is truly representative of the wider planet. And the whole dataset is just a snapshot in time, so we need observations throughout this period to understand how the atmosphere is changing - new storms, new wiggles in the jets, new colour changes in the belts and zones. So we need both spatial context, and temporal context.
That’s where the community of citizen scientists and amateur astronomers comes in. Jupiter is past its opposition now (January 10th), but the views are still amazing in the evening sky - over in Gemini (near to Castor and Pollux). I’m sure that people will still be observing Jupiter and capturing images, uploading them to repositories like the Planetary Virtual Observatory and Laboratory (PVOL), the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO), or the ALPO-Japan site. But if you needed a little bit extra encouragement to head outside on a cold night, then knowing that you’re supporting the analysis of JWST observations might help!
Clear skies!