NASA’s Juno mission has shared a stunning image of the terrifying surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa.
NASA has shared an astonishingly close, high-resolution photo of Jupiter’s moon Europa, all thanks to the Juno mission, which centers around the largest planet in our solar system. The image reveals a detailed view of a puzzling region of the moon’s heavily fractured icy crust. NASA explains that the highest resolution image of Jupiter’s Moon to date covers approximately 93 miles (150 kilometers) by 125 miles (200 kilometers) of Europa’s surface, revealing a region crisscrossed with a network of fine grooves and double ridges, a kind of highway. to hell, considering that the moon is constantly attacked by radiation from Jupiter. NASA says: “Juno’s Stellar Reference Unit (SRU), a stellar camera used to orient the spacecraft, obtained the black-and-white image during the spacecraft’s Europa flyby on September 29, 2022, at a distance of approximately 256 miles (412 kilometers)”.
“This image is unlocking an incredible level of detail in a region that has not previously been imaged at such resolution and under such revealing lighting conditions. The team’s use of a star-tracking camera for science is a great example of Juno’s innovative capabilities. These features are so intriguing. Understanding how they formed, and how they connect to Europa’s history, tells us about the internal and external processes that shape the icy crust,” said Heidi Becker, co-principal investigator of the Juno Stellar Reference Unit.
This black-and-white image was captured on September 29, 2022 via Juno’s Stellar Reference Unit, a stellar camera used to orient the spacecraft from a distance of approximately 256 miles. The surprising part is that the image of this region of Europa was captured as Juno raced past at about 15 miles per second. NASA says that the dark spots in the image may be the result of something from below coming to the surface. There are also some white dots that are high-energy particle signatures of the harsh radiation around the moon.
More about NASA’s Juno mission
NASA launched the Juno mission on August 5, 2011. It embarked on a 5-year journey to the largest planet in our solar system: Jupiter. The main goal of NASA’s mission to Jupiter is to probe beneath the planet’s dense clouds and unlock Jupiter’s secrets. The Juno spacecraft is designed to reveal insightful information about Jupiter, from its origin and evolution to our solar system and the giant planets in general throughout the universe. Juno reached Jupiter on July 4, 2016.
