HST Spectroscopic Observations of Jupiter After the Collision of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9

Ultraviolet spectra obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope identified at least 10 molecules and atoms in the perturbed stratosphere near the G impact site, most never before observed in Jupiter. The large mass of sulfur-containing material, more than 10¹⁴ grams in S_2 alone, indicates that many of the sulfur-containing molecules S_2, CS_2, CS, H_2S, and S^+ may be derived from a sulfur-bearing parent molecule native to Jupiter. If so, the fragment must have penetrated at least as deep as the predicted NH_4SH cloud at a pressure of approximately 1 to 2 bars. Stratospheric NH_3 was also observed, which is consistent with fragment penetration below the cloud tops. Approximately 10^7 grams of neutral and ionized metals were observed in emission, including Mg II, Mg I, Si I, Fe I, and Fe II. Oxygen-containing molecules were conspicuous by their absence; upper limits for SO_2, SO, CO, SiO, and H_2O are derived.