Closer images of Io are expected from the spacecraft in the coming months
NASA's Juno spacecraft shared stunning images of Jupiter's volcanic moon Io and its lava-scarred surface. The moon passed by at a distance of 11,645 kilometres on October 16.
Jupiter's fifth moon, Io, is the most volcanically active body in the solar system. In the new detailed images from Juno, the moon appears tie-dyed with swirls of light, dark spots and molten-red patches.
The images were processed by citizen scientists using raw data captured by the Juno spacecraft, space.com reported.
NASA earlier said that Io is "a true volcanic wonderland with hundreds of erupting volcanoes gushing tons of molten lava" and sulfurous gases at any moment. Io is subject to harsh tides that strain and crush the moon as it travels along its elliptical course due to the immense gravitational pull of Jupiter and the passing orbital tugs of sibling moons Europa and Ganymede.
Jupiter, the solar system's largest planet, has a total of 92 moons. Its most volcanic moon, Io, is slightly larger than Earth's moon and the fourth-largest moon in the solar system.
Closer images of Io are expected from the spacecraft in the coming months. According to New Scientist, in February 2024, it is expected to swoop to within 1500 kilometres of Io's surface.
NASA launched the Juno spacecraft on August 5, 2011, on a 5-year journey to Jupiter. After covering a 1.7-billion-mile journey, it arrived at the planet on July 4, 2016.