Io: The Fissure King?
Explanation:
Is Io the solar system's
Fissure King?
Well, probably not ... but it is the most active
volcanic moon.
Active volcanoes on Jupiter's moon Io
were a surprise discovery of
the Voyager missions of the late 1970s.
The extent of Io's
volcanic activity today
is being investigated close-up by the Galileo spacecraft currently exploring
the Jovian system.
The two frames above show a roughly 300 mile square area around
the
Io volcano called Marduk.
The left-hand view of Marduk was made by
Voyager in 1979, the right-hand view by Galileo earlier this year.
A comparison reveals that dramatic changes have occured, including
the creation of a dark, linear feature running diagonally through
the Galileo image that is probably a huge volcanic fissure.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
