Sometimes you come across images that are so unexpected and mysterious that you don't know what to think about them. Here are a few that look like crazy pieces of art.
This abstract piece looks kind of sad, a life unravelling. But look at it more closely...
It's actually an image of atmospheric features on Jupiter. The clouds swirling around a jet stream region look like thick layers of paint.
This looks like a large canvas by an artist looking for a dramatic effect. And it is dramatic—it's a detailed look into the Great Red Spot.
Here are the tortured souls wandering around, clutching each other. It's actually more clouds on Jupiter, but I can't help feeling it could be painted by Edvard Munch.
Edvard Munch, The Scream, 1893. Image source
Talking of tortured souls. Does this look like a good place to end up?
Yes, it looks like Hell, doesn't it? It's actually a composite image of the central cyclone at Jupiter's north pole, with eight cyclones encircling it.
In other words, Hell.
Ah, this looks better! It looks like intricate and fragile glasswork. Beautiful. But it's actually Jupiter's south pole. Those glass beads are cyclones, up to 1,000 kilometres wide.
In other words, Icy Hell.
Clearly, this is a finely painted fantasy scene of celestial waves. There's even a dolphin swimming through the waves. But it's nothing but clouds along the South Temperate Belt.
What's this? It looks like our dolphin picture again, this time with party lights. In reality, this image captures auroras on the poles of the gas giant.
These images were mostly captured during flybys by Juno, many as recent as 12 February. The raw images can be found here, and citizen scientists have been colour-enhancing them.
Juno is only halfway through its flybys—there are still another 16 to go. The pictures are sure to be just as dramatic.
All images, unless otherwise credited, courtesy of NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute, curated by CNN.
