Volcanoes in Space
Introduction John Spencer Volcano Briefing Imaging Io Hunting Volcanoes
Jupiter
Volcano Briefing

Although the cause of this internal heating is different than on Earth, the consequences are the same: volcanoes! Io's volcanoes are quite similar to terrestrial volcanoes like Hawai'i's Kilauea:

-Long-lived eruptions, lasting 15 years or more.
-Lava travels through lava tubes
-Lava produces plumes when it contacts cooler materials

Io's volcanoes are different from Earth's in two important ways: They are massive and very hot. They may be similar to volcanoes that erupted early in Earth's history, and may help us learn more about Earth's history.

Io's volcanoes are proving more active than scientists had realized. Images from the Galileo spacecraft reveal recent lava flows, such as those from the Tvashtar Catena. The orange-yellow ribbon is a cooling lava flow more than 60 kilometers (37 miles) long. Dark, diffuse deposits surrounding the active lava flows were not there during Galileo's November 1999 flyby of Io.

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Imaging Io


 

 

Active volcano: Tvashtar Catena


What is Io erupting?

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