The images were taken within minutes of each other. Reflected sunlight at each of these wavelengths penetrates to different depths and is scattered or absorbed by different atmospheric constituents before detection by Galileo. The violet mosaic reveals the relative abundances of chemicals that color Jupiter's atmosphere. The three infrared images respectively probe higher in Jupiter's atmosphere. The highest features, such as the diffuse haze that overlies the Great Red Spot and the small clouds to the northeast of it, are most apparent on the 886 nm mosaic.
North is to the top in all frames.
Each pixel subtends a square about 30 kilometers on a side. It is embedded between a westward jet to the north and an eastward jet to the south. The central region of the Great Red Spot is relatively quiescent and shows little change over this time period. The direction and velocity of Jupiter's winds are determined by measuring the displacements of cloud features in images such as these. Several competing theories seek to explain the existence and stability of Jovian atmospheric features, including the Great Red Spot.