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Washington: NASA’s spacecraft Juno snapped detailed images of the most volcanically active world in our Solar System. During this close fly-by, the spacecraft spotted plumes of volcanic activity erupting from Io’s surface in real time.
This encounter was the second in a set of two close fly-bys designed to provide new insight into the fiery phenomena that lurk beneath Io’s surface.
Jupiter’s moon Io is one of the four largest moons of the planet, known as the Galilean moons. It was discovered by the Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei in 1610. lo is the innermost of these four moons and is the fourth largest moon in the solar system. It’s a fascinating celestial body for several reasons.
In the image, Io could be seen against the vast backdrop of space. Half-illuminated by sunlight from the right, its night side softly aglow from Jupiter’s reflected light, Io presented a mesmerising sight.
Io is the most volcanically active body in the solar system. Its surface is covered with sulfur and sulfur dioxide, and its intense volcanic activity is a result of tidal heating caused by the gravitational forces exerted by Jupiter and its other large moons, Europa and Ganymede.
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