NASA Spacecraft Gets Up Close With Jupiter's Great Red Spot

"Scientists are about to get an up-close and personal look at the planet Jupiter's most famous landmark, the Great Red Spot."

"NASA's Juno spacecraft will be directly over the spot shortly after 10 p.m. ET Monday, July 10, about 5,600 miles above the gas giant's cloud tops. That's closer than any spacecraft has been before."

"The spot is actually a giant storm that has been blowing on Jupiter for centuries. It's huge, larger than Earth in diameter."

"'It's lasted a really long time,' says Scott Bolton of the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio and principal scientist for NASA's Juno mission to Jupiter. 'No scientists really understand exactly how that storm is created or why it could last so long.'"