Jupiter has an Embarrassment of Riches when it comes to the Moons. among him 80 known moons Lies Io, which NASA describes as The most volcanically active in the world for the solar system. Ayo is about to take center stage, as that Juno probe NASA (which studies Jupiter) will point its cameras and instruments at this fiery moon.
In anticipation of new sightings of Io, NASA has released a stunning infrared image taken by Juno in July at a distance 80,000 km. The brighter the color, the higher the temperature, and all these spots show how volcanic the moon is.
New photo session of Io
In a statement released Wednesday,
NASA said
The Juno spacecraft was ready to image Io on it December 15th. We are waiting for new photos, but it will only be an appetizer before the main course. Juno will approach Io closer in 2023 and 2024.
Juno reached Jupiter in 2016 And it got a mission extension in 2021 for a series of flybys of some of Jupiter’s most interesting moons. IU is the latest to receive special attention.
Juno builds on an already impressive collection of photos from the lunar flyby
Ganymede and Europe. Close-up views from the spacecraft showed what these surfaces might look like Wild. Europe is particularly interesting, as it will be in the heart of the next day
Europa Clipper mission
from NASA. The moon is a good place Look for signs of life in our solar system.
More than just photos
Io is slightly larger than Earth’s moon. She is known to her molten lava lakes And his explosions. Juno detected an active volcanic plume in late 2018.
NASA has planned nine flybys of Io. It won’t just be pretty pictures. The researchers will study how Io interacts with Jupiter How is the moon Associated with the gas giant aurora.
If we’re lucky, we’ll see Io in a new light approaching its volcanic features. We might even see it spewing lava. It will be hot.
Main image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/ASI/INAF/JIRAM
