New images of Neptune show the growing level of detail available to Earth-bound telescopes through adaptive optics -- technology that corrects for distortions produced by Earth's atmosphere.

Researchers at Cornell University and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory captured the near-infrared images using the Palomar High Angular Resolution Observer (PHARO), a camera on California's 200-inch Hale Telescope.

These are the first scientific results produced by PHARO's new adaptive optics (AO) system, a mirror between the telescope and camera that's adjusted up to 500 times per second to compensate for atmospheric turbulence.

The resulting difference in clarity is apparent in the images below, taken respectively by PHARO with and without the AO system. In the "AO On" image, distinct clouds are visible in Neptune's upper atmosphere, including a Europe-sized cloud that appears as a bright spot in the image's lower right hand quarter.

The clouds are "probably methane," says team member Don Banfield, a Cornell astronomer. He and other astronomers have just begun to analyze the images to pinpoint the composition and altitude of the clouds.