What’s that: Io, Jupiter’s third largest moon
When to take: October 15, 2023
Where: 262,000 miles (422,000 kilometers) from Jupiter
Why this is so special: This photo, taken by NASA’s Juno spacecraft, is the highest resolution image taken of the most volcanic world in the solar system in 22 years. During Juno’s 55th orbit of Jupiter, the spacecraft came within just 7,260 miles (11,680 kilometers) of Io’s pockmarked surface, and took dozens of images. The photo above (with exaggerated contrast and color) reveals new details about Io’s north polar region, which is covered in mountains as high as 20,000 feet (6,000 meters), according to Io expert and image processor Jason Perry.
Also published was a compilation of Juno’s images of Io taken on October 16, as well as other photos showing both Io and Jupiter in the same field of view.
Io is the fifth most distant moon from Jupiter, orbiting at an average distance of 262,000 miles (422,000 kilometers), and the third largest Jovian moon, slightly larger than Earth’s moon, according to Space.com. (It’s smaller than Ganymede and Callisto, but bigger than Europa.)
Io is covered in volcanoes, with volcanic activity about 100 times greater than volcanic activity on NASA’s Earth. The cause is tidal friction; Io is tidally locked to Jupiter, always showing the same side of the planet, but its orbital path is elliptical due to the gravitational pull of Europa and Ganymede, according to NASA. As Io bulges in and out, friction produces heat.
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The images, taken by the spacecraft’s two-megapixel JunoCam, are the highest-resolution photos of Io since NASA’s Galileo orbiter was in the Jovian system in 2001. During its mission, Galileo photographed two tall volcanic plumes from the Pele and Tvashtar Catena volcanoes. in the moon.
Juno was on the cusp of Io’s two closer passes. The spacecraft will make its 57th and 58th closest approaches, or perijoves (close passes), to Jupiter on December 30, 2023, and February 3, 2024, when it will reach just 930 miles (1,500 km) from the surface. Io.
2023-10-24 05:35:30
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