US astronomers have produced groundbreaking photos of the planet Jupiter using "lucky imaging" infrared technology that eliminates the distortion that the Earth's atmosphere causes in images, the BBC reported.

Using the Gemini North Telescope in Hawaii, the Juno spacecraft and the Hubble Space Telescope, the team from the University of California at Berkeley was able to create the sharpest images yet of the planet by taking multiple very short exposures and keeping only the "lucky" sharp images that were captured while the Earth's atmosphere was briefly stable.

The resulting mosaic of images reveal storm systems forming around deep clouds of water ice and liquid beneath the planet's massive 60km high storm clouds, and give researchers a closer look at what makes and sustains the planet's weather systems.

These include deep water vapour clouds, large convective towers made of moist air similar to thunderhead clouds on Earth, and clear areas below.

Understanding Jupiter's atmosphere and water content can help scientists understand how the planet was formed.