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One of the Most Massive Volcanic Eruptions in the Solar System has been Spotted on Jupiter’s Moon Io
Monday, August 26, 2013 8:11
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One of the most massive volcanic eruptions in the solar system has been spotted on Jupiter’s moon Io – by a telescope perched on a volcano on Earth.
On 15 August the Keck II telescope on Mauna Kea in Hawaii recorded fountains of lava gushing from fissures in the Rarog Patera region of Io.
Heated by gravitational squeezing from Jupiter and its other moons, Io is covered in volcanoes that erupt almost continuously.
This event is easily in the top 10 yet seen on Io by humans, says Ashley Davies of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
Images from the Voyager 1 probe taken decades ago make up this composite picture of Io which shows a plume spewing from a hotspot called Loki and catching the light on the horizon (Image: NASA/JPL/USGS)
“We try to look at Io at every opportunity, in the hope of seeing something like this,” says Davies. “This time we got lucky.”
The lava fountains spouted molten rock hundreds of metres above Io’s surface, erupting over an area totalling 31 square kilometres.
newscientist.com
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Guess what just flew by Jupiter on this day (15th Aug)………….
Comet Ison.
Coincidence?