New research reveals that Jupiter’s magnetic tornadoes generate massive Earth-sized storms, visible only in ultraviolet light.

While Jupiter’s Great Red Spot has been a constant feature of the planet for centuries, University of California, Berkeley, astronomers have discovered equally large spots at the planet’s

Magnetic vortices twisting down from Jupiter's ionosphere into its deep atmosphere cause giant, ultraviolet-absorbing polar anticyclones, each the size of our Earth.

The dark UV ovals were first spotted by NASA’s Hubble spacecraft in the late 1990s, but have only recently been studied in depth.

According to the team, these dark UV ovals are a hint that some unusual processes are taking place in Jupiter’s strong magnetic field. This field spreads down to the poles and deep into the planet’s atmosphere,

The Great Red Spot is not the only Earth-sized atmospheric disturbance seen on Jupiter. That dramatic storm remains number one for size and power in the Solar System, but ultraviolet (UV) observations from Hubble have now revealed that Earth-size ovals of haze are being stirred up over Jupiter's polar regions.