Aeolian sediment transport on Io from lava-frost interactions. “In the end, in planetary science, that is what we are trying to do.”Ī paper on the findings was published today in the journal Nature Communications. Lujendra Ojha, a researcher in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Rutgers University. “Work like this really allows us to understand how the cosmos works,” said Dr. The spacing of the crests and the height-to-width ratios they observed were consistent with trends for dunes seen on Earth and other planets. Once the researchers devised a mechanism by which the dunes could form, they looked to photos of Io’s surface taken by the Solid State Imager on NASA’s Galileo spacecraft for more proof. When lava flows into sulfur dioxide beneath the moon’s surface, its venting is dense and fast moving enough to move grains on Io and possibly enable the formation of large-scale features like dunes. McDonald and colleagues used mathematical equations to simulate the forces on a single grain of basalt or frost and calculate its path. NASA estimates that there are hundreds of actively erupting volcanoes over the surface of Io, the third largest moon of Jupiter, and the fifth from the gas giant located at around at 262,000. The surface of Io is a mix of black solidified lava flows and sand, flowing ‘effusive’ lava streams, and ‘snows’ of sulfur dioxide.ĭr. “This work tells us that the environments in which dunes are found are considerably more varied than the classical, endless desert landscapes on parts of Earth or on the fictional planet Arrakis in ‘ Dune’,” Dr. Introduction Ten Things to Know About Io Pop Culture Resources Jupiter's moon Io is the most volcanically active world in the Solar System, with hundreds of volcanoes, some erupting lava fountains dozens of miles (or kilometers) high. “We have proposed, and quantitatively tested, a mechanism by which sand grains can move, and in turn dunes could be forming there.”Ĭurrent scientific understanding dictates that dunes, by their nature, are hills or ridges of sand piled up by the wind.Īnd planetary researchers in previous studies of Io, while describing its surface as containing some dune-like features, concluded the ridges could not be dunes since the forces from winds on Io are weak due to the moon’s low-density atmosphere. Io has a very tenuous atmosphere, composed in large part of sulfur dioxide. Its average density of about 3.52 grams per cubic cm is characteristic of rocks but not ices. George McDonald, a postdoctoral researcher in the Earth and Planetary Sciences Department at Rutgers University. Britannica Quiz Planets and the Earth’s Moon global mosaic of Jupiter's moon Io Io is about 3,640 km (2,260 miles) in diameter, a little larger than Earth ’s Moon. “Our studies point to the possibility of Io as a new ‘dune world’,” said Dr. White patches in the image are areas of frost. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / Rutgers University. The surface of Io is completely volcanic, with lava flows of sulfur from the interior, as shown in this image. Show me the Level 1 version of this page.Potential dunes on Jupiter’s moon Io: the dark material (lower left) is recently emplaced lava flows, while the repeated, line-like features dominating the image are potential dunes the bright, white areas may be newly emplaced grains as the lava flows vaporize adjacent frost. Io releases this inner heat in volcanic eruptions. Scientists believe that Io heats up internally when it changes shape. Differences in the strength of Jupiter's gravitational pull as the distance between the planet and Io varies causes slight changes in Io's shape.
Two of Jupiter's satellites, Europa and Ganymede, pull Io into an elliptical orbit around Jupiter.
This temperature is approximately 3 times the hottest surface temperature on Mercury, the planet closest to the Sun. 1,144 Io Moon Premium High Res Photos Browse 1,144 io moon photos and images available, or search for edinburgh castle to find more great photos and pictures. Scientists believe that lava at one of the sites reaches a temperature of over 1700 degrees Celsius. Io was found to have at least 12 active volcanoes erupting lava at temperatures over 1200 degrees Celsius. Instruments aboard the space probe Galileo measured infrared energy emitted by volcanic hot spots on the satellite's surface. Except at its volcanic hot spots, Io's surface temperature is well below freezing. Jupiter's moon Io is 778 million kilometers from the Sun.
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