\u00a0NASA\u2019s Juno mission has provided the first measurements of the temperature below the surface of Jupiter\u2019s moon Io, revealing significant heating within the shallow subsurface of the most volcanically active world in the solar system. Collected during two close flybys, the data also shows that most of Io\u2019s surface is remarkably smooth and composed of material of very low density.<\/p>\n
Published Wednesday in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, these findings<\/a> break new observational ground for both fiery and icy worlds beyond our planet.<\/p>\n Io\u2019s extreme volcanism is powered by tidal heating. The moon is constantly stretched and squeezed by Jupiter\u2019s immense gravity as it travels its slightly elliptical orbit, generating internal heat output many times greater than Earth\u2019s. Until now, virtually everything known about that heat came from infrared observations, which sense only the temperature of the top surface. The latest findings are derived from data collected by the spacecraft\u2019s Microwave Radiometer (MWR) instrument.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Juno Microwave Radiometer directly observed Io\u2019s heat output by looking below the surface,\u201d said Scott Bolton, study coauthor and Juno\u2019s principal investigator at Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio. \u201cThe surprising discovery that we could see below a rocky moon\u2019s surface has important implications for studying Earth\u2019s volcanoes. Juno has taught us that if we look with an MWR-type instrument near a volcano on Earth, we might see a similar signature in the subsurface temperature gradient, providing new information on how terrestrial volcanoes work.\u201d<\/p>\n Juno\u2019s Microwave Radiometer was designed by Bolton to peer beneath Jupiter\u2019s cloud tops to investigate the dynamics and composition of the gas giant\u2019s deep atmosphere. The MWR\u2019s six microwave antennas serve as a single instrument, simultaneously detecting microwaves at a wide range of wavelengths, from about half an inch to 20 inches (1.3 to 51 centimeters). During the mission\u2019s extended phase<\/a>, the MWR instrument has provided the opportunity to observe three of the planet\u2019s Galilean moons: Ganymede, Europa, and Io.<\/p>\n \u201cThe technique is novel in that each wavelength explores different depths, providing a new way to characterize the deep atmosphere of giant planets and the subsurface crusts of icy and rocky moons,\u201d said Bolton. \u201cAt Ganymede and Europa, we explored tens of miles below the surface, assuming their ice shells were mostly pure water, but the ability to probe into the volcanic rock at Io was an unexpected discovery.\u201d<\/p>\n During flybys on Dec. 30, 2023, and Feb. 3, 2024, the solar-powered Juno spacecraft came within about 930 miles (1,500 kilometers) of the moon\u2019s surface.<\/p>\n \u201cThe instrument measured Io\u2019s thermal emission at depths ranging from a few inches down to tens of feet. Everywhere we looked, we found the temperature rising by more than 40 degrees Fahrenheit just several feet into the surface \u2014 a gradient far steeper than solar heating alone can explain,\u201d said Shannon Brown, the paper\u2019s lead author at NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.<\/p>\n The data suggests two possible explanations. First, heat could be rising steadily through a conductive crust. While this background heat flow \u2014 measured at 1 to 3 watts per square meter \u2014 is relatively gentle on a local scale (roughly equivalent to a small nightlight glowing under every square yard), across the entire moon it represents a release of energy up to 30 times Earth\u2019s average. Alternatively, the signal could be coming from cooling lava flows, capped by roughly 30 to 35 feet (9 to 11 meters) of solidified crust, that cover about 10% of the moon\u2019s surface at any given time.<\/p>\n \u201cIo provides a unique window into learning how tidal heating works throughout the cosmos, a fundamental process that provides energy and heat to worlds that are far from their parent star,\u201d said Bolton. \u201cThis process can not only create the most volcanic body in the solar system, in the case of Io, but also fuels the subsurface oceans on the moons of giant planets, such as Europa and Ganymede. Up until this point we could only observe the heat escaping at the surface or through eruptions. Now we can characterize how the heat is moving from the interior toward the surface.\u201d<\/p>\n Another big insight gained from the two flybys is just how smooth Io is. Prior to the recent findings, the moon was known for its tall mountains, but the MWR indicates that apart from this visible topography, the surface features expansive smooth patches that stretch for 60 miles (100 kilometers) or more. Because Juno flew by overlapping regions of Io at different angles, the team was able to map how the surface reflects microwaves, much like an airline passenger might see the ocean flash with sunlight only at specific angles.<\/p>\n \u201cAway from its mountains, the surface is more like the Great Plains of North America, and even though Io is a rocky body, the surface material has a very low density \u2014 more like pumice or a fluffy volcanic ash than solid rock,\u201d said Brown.<\/p>\n A division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, JPL manages the Juno mission for the principal investigator, Scott Bolton, of the Southwest Research Institute. Juno is part of NASA\u2019s New Frontiers Program, which is managed at the agency\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the NASA\u2019s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Lockheed Martin Space in Denver built and operates the spacecraft. More information about Juno is at:<\/p>\n