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ANASAspacecraft orbit Jupiter has just witnessed some of the most extreme volcanic eruptions ever seen in thesolar system , coming from a giant underground magma chamber on the " torment " Jovian moon Io . The energy pouring from this record - breaking red-hot spot far pass the amount of power we are bring out on Earth , researchers say .
Io is Jupiter ’s third - largest moon , sweep roughly 2,300 miles ( 3,700 km ) across , which makes it slimly bigger than Earth ’s moon . It orbits Jupiter at a distance of around 262,000 miles ( 422,000 km ) — also similar to how far away the moon orbits Earth — but it move much faster than its lunar similitude , trounce around Jupiter every 42.5 minute . This is due to the gas heavyweight ’s immense gravitational force , which has also turned Io into a fiery hellscapecovered with up to 400 volcanoes and multiple lava lake .
Io is the most volcanic world in the solar system, with around 400 volcanoes. Its extreme activity is driven by “tidal flexing” from Jupiter’s crushing gravity.
Io is frequently supervise by NASA ’s Juno space vehicle , which has been circling Jupiter in a highly elliptical , or extend , reach since 2016 . Juno passes by Io once every few month and fixes its gaze on the volcanic artificial satellite so scientist can teach more about the Sun Myung Moon ’s fiery interior .
During Juno ’s latest flyby of Io , on Dec. 27 , 2024 , the spacecraft ’s Jovian Infrared Auroral Mapper ( JIRAM ) official document detected a massive young infrared hot spot in the moon ’s southern hemisphere where multiple eruptions , in all probability fueled by a undivided giant magma bedroom , were accept place , NASA illustration write in astatement .
The elephantine hot spot was chucking out around 80 trillion Isaac Watts of get-up-and-go , which is equivalent to " six times the total energy [ output ] of all the earth ’s power plants , " according to NASA .
The newly observed hot spot is made up of multiple eruptions fed by a single massive magma chamber and is radiating around 80 trillion watts of energy.
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" The data from this former flyby really shove off our minds,“Scott Bolton , a space physicist at the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio and principal tec of the Juno mission , said in the statement . " This is the most powerful volcanic event ever recorded on the most volcanic earth in our solar system — so that ’s really enjoin something . "
Juno also capture pic of Io , which revealed that a large coloured patch has emerged on the moon ’s surface . This expanse is likely covered in solidify lava flows that pour out during the eruption , according to NASA . However , the ballistic capsule was too far aside during the recent flyby to catch elaborated images of the dark-skinned spot , so its truthful nature remains unclear .
Juno photos from the spacecraft’s last three flybys of Io show a dark patch emerging on the moon’s surface. The most recent image (right) was taken at the greatest distance and, therefore, has the lowest resolution.
Based on the size of the cryptical surface characteristic and the levels of caloric radiation syndrome , researchers estimated that the magma chamber that feeds this hot spot likely spans an region of around 40,000 square miles ( 105,000 square kilometers ) — around 30 % larger than Lake Superior , Earth ’s largest fresh water lake . This draw the chamber the largest volcanic feature article on Io , surpassingLoki Patera — a jumbo lake of lava covering an area of around 8,000 substantial miles ( 21,000 solid km ) in Io ’s northern hemisphere .
Extreme volcanism
Io ’s intense volcanic activity is the result of " tidal flexing , " where the moon is endlessly being squeezed and release like a stress ball by Jupiter ’s crushing gravitation . This international forcefulness superheats the rock beneath Io ’s surface , transforming it into magma that then erupts onto the surface .
This is dissimilar from volcanic activity on Earth , which is ride by internal heating from our planet ’s liquified metal core .
For decades , research worker speculated that the entire subsurface of Io was one giving magma ocean . However , last year , researchersconclusively demonstrate that this was not the case . or else , only specific area , like the new discovered magma bedroom , accumulate immersion of magma beneath each of the moon ’s seeable volcanic feature .
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Juno will perform a closer flyby of Io on March 3 , which should give researchers a good musical theme of what is pass inside the new fall upon magma chamber and render clues about volcanism elsewhere in the solar system .
" While it is always keen to witness events that rewrite the record rule book , this new spicy spot can potentially do much more , " Bolton said . " The intriguing feature could meliorate our understanding of volcanism not only on Io but on other worlds as well . "
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