Scientists have found signs of water above the “deepest clouds” of Jupiter while studying the Great Red Spot – a storm that has been raging on the planet for hundreds of years. The findings showed that the largest planet in the solar system may have two to nine times more oxygen than the Sun, the United States’ National Aeronautical and Space Administration said on Wednesday.

The observations were made by NASA astrophysicist Gordon Bjoraker and his team, and published in the September issue of the Astronomical Journal. They made the conclusions using high-resolution spectra of the Great Red Spot, observed with telescopes from Earth. What they observed is “almost certainly a water cloud”, they said.

The finding “supports theoretical and computer-simulation models that have predicted abundant water on Jupiter made of oxygen tied up with molecular hydrogen”, NASA said.

The space agency called the finding stirring because the “experiment could have easily failed” – the Great Red Spot is full of dense clouds that make it hard for astronomers to study its chemistry. However, Bjoraker said: “It turns out they are not so thick that they block our ability to see deeply. That’s been a pleasant surprise.”

If Juno, a spacecraft circling the Jupiter, makes similar findings, scientists may apply the same methods to understanding the presence of water on other planets without spacecraft.