Space research agencies continue to study the mysteries found in each of the celestial bodies in our solar system, our galaxy, the Milky Way and the infinite universe.
On this occasion, NASA has shared a disturbing and key piece of information about one of the moons found in our solar system that has left the astronomers and scientists of this space agency baffled and here we explain every detail.
The Juno spacecraft in the past months of December to February flew over the surface of Io, one of Jupiter’s moons, approaching about 1,500 km away, where it discovered a volcanic surface that is active and constantly erupting.
“It’s just full of volcanoes, and we caught some of them in action”he mentioned Scott Boltonprincipal investigator of NASA’s Juno space mission, at the General Assembly of the European Geophysical Union in Vienna on April 16.
One of the active mountains shown by Juno was discovered thanks to sunlight that helped generate shadows and reveal its gigantic shape, which has a very sharp and steep peak on its edges, which is why it was named “Bell Tower Mountain.”
Bolton explained that when this mountain and others erupt, lava and magma come out, which when it falls on the cold surface of Io, which hovers around -100 °C, automatically freezes, forming a kind of sulfurous snow.
Juno also recorded that the hot lava generated from volcanic eruptions has already formed a lava lake, which they have named “Loki Patera”, which contains molten magma on its edges and steep islands of rock inside, covering approximately 200 km long at the northern latitude of the Moon Io.
“The specular reflection our instruments recorded from the lake suggests that parts of Io’s surface are as smooth as glass, reminiscent of volcanically created obsidian glass on Earth,” Bolton exclaimed.
Similarly, Bolton explained that Io is ‘Jupiter’s tortured moon’, since the tidal forces generated by the large planet and the other nearby moons (Europa, Ganymede and Callisto) influence the volcanic activity of this satellite, making It is the celestial body with the most eruptions in the solar system.
These eruptions are so strong that they can even be seen from Earth using telescopes. This is a very interesting fact, since Io and Earth are the only celestial bodies in the solar system that have active volcanoes.
The images captured by Juno helped recreate a video simulation of the lava lake, Loki Patera and the giant Campanario Mountain, which is located on the surface of Io, which you can see by clicking HERE.
On the other hand, the surface of Io, which is not molten by lava from volcanoes, is covered in yellow sulfur and sulfur dioxide, in addition to having colder poles than the middle latitudes, compared to the other moons of the planet. planet Jupiter.
These impressive images of Juno help scientists understand the volcanic activity of celestial bodies and their evolution, as well as the dynamics of tidal forces that are influenced by other planets and celestial bodies in the solar system.
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