Connect with us

Published

2 weeks ago

on

Jupiter’s moon Io is the most volcanic world in the Solar System, with over 400 volcanoes. Some of them eject plumes as high as 500 km (300 mi) above the surface. Its surface is almost entirely shaped by all this volcanic activity, with large regions covered by silicates, sulphur, and sulphur dioxide brought up from the moon’s interior. The intense volcanic activity has created over 100 mountains, and some of them are taller than Mt. Everest.

Io is unique in the Solar System, and the Juno orbiter’s JunoCam captured some new images of Io’s abundant volcanic activity.

Io is in a tough position. It’s locked in a kind of gravitational tug-of-war with massive Jupiter and the other Galilean moons, Ganymede, Europe, and Callisto. All that gravitational energy, particularly from Jupiter and Europa, creates friction in the moon’s interior that creates ‘tidal heating.’ That sets it apart from Earth’s volcanism, which is caused largely by the heat from the decay of radioactive isotopes in the mantle, including uranium, potassium, and thorium. In fact, Io produces bout 40% more heat than Earth, an amount that simply cannot be produced by radioactive decay.

This composite image shows how volcanoes dot Io's surface. It was created with Juno's JIRAM instrument and its JunoCam instrument. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/ASI/INAF/JIRAM
This composite image shows how volcanoes dot Io’s surface. It was created with Juno’s JIRAM instrument and its JunoCam instrument. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/ASI/INAF/JIRAM

While Juno’s images of Io are the newest, they’re not necessarily the best. Voyager 1 and Galileo both got closer to Io than Juno did, and their images of the surface are even more stunning.

Galileo captured this image of Io's surface with a volcano in 1997. Image Credit: NASA/JPL/DLR
Galileo captured this image of Io’s surface with a volcano in 1997. Image Credit: NASA/JPL/DLR

But Juno’s much more modern instruments allow it to study Io’s volcanic nature in greater detail. This is important because of some questions scientists would like answers to. Although there’s widespread scientific agreement that tidal heating creates the heat driving all of the moon’s volcanic activity, the heating doesn’t create the volcanoes where we expect them to be, according to our best scientific understanding. One of Juno’s goals is to image the moon’s surface over time to build a more comprehensive picture of the moon’s volcanic activity.

Io has about 115 named mountains, and their average height is about 6,300 m (20,700 ft). Boösaule Montes, at 17,500 metres (57,400 ft) is Io’s tallest moon. Compare that to Mt. Everest’s height of almost 8,850 meters (29,035 ft.) And Io is only 3600 km in diameter, compared to Earth’s 12,700 km diameter. Mountains can be so high on smaller bodies because they have weaker gravity.

Io, the Moon, and Earth. Image Credit: By Apollo 17 Picture of the Whole Earth: NASATelescopic Image of the Full Moon: Gregory H. ReveraTrue color image of Io: NASA / JPL / University of Arizona - The Earth seen from Apollo 17.jpgFullMoon2010.jpgIo_highest_resolution_true_color.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39083698Did you miss our previous article…
https://mansbrand.com/erosita-sees-changes-in-the-most-powerful-quasar/

Total
0
Shares
Share 0
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Related Topics:
Continue Reading

Frontier Adventure

The Best Backpacking Gear for the John Muir Trail

Published

10 hours ago

on

June 5, 2023

By

Wind4 016 2

By Michael Lanza

So you’re planning to thru-hike the John Muir Trail and making all of the necessary preparations, and now you’re wondering: What’s the best gear for a JMT hike? Having thru-hiked the JMT as well as taken numerous other backpacking trips all over the High Sierra—mostly between late August and late September, which I consider that the best time to walk the Sierra, to avoid snow and the voracious mosquitoes and blazing hot afternoons of mid-summer—I offer the following picks for the best lightweight backpacking gear and apparel for a JMT thru-hike.

Indisputably one of the best backpacking trips in America—and among the very best I’ve taken over three decades of backpacking, including 10 years I spent as Northwest Editor and lead gear reviewer for Backpacker magazine and even longer running this blog—the JMT meanders for 211 miles through the magnificent High Sierra, from Yosemite Valley to the summit of the highest peak in the Lower 48, 14,505-foot Mount Whitney (where backpackers must then descend another 11 miles to finish the trip at Whitney Portal trailhead). See my story about thru-hiking the JMT in seven days.

With few opportunities to resupply along the trail—and given the generally dry weather in the Sierra in summer—you can easily and should hike the JMT with the lightest gear that works for you (or that you can afford). Maximum pack weight will depend on how many days you spend on the trail and your food weight, but it’s quite feasible to keep your base pack weight (everything but food and water) within 15 pounds or less—and certainly no more than 20 pounds—without compromising safety or comfort in camp.

Wind4 016 3
Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Join The Big Outside to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Click here for my e-guides to classic backpacking trips. Click here to learn how I can help you plan your next trip.

A backpacker hiking the John Muir Trail above Helen Lake in Kings Canyon N.P., High Sierra.
” data-image-caption=”Marco Garofalo backpacking the John Muir Trail above Helen Lake in Kings Canyon N.P. Click photo to learn how I can help you plan your JMT thru-hike.
” data-medium-file=”https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/JMT2-085-Marco-Garofalo-hiking-above-Helen-Lake-John-Muir-Trail-Kings-Canyon-N.P.-High-Sierra..jpg?fit=300%2C200&ssl=1″ data-large-file=”https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/JMT2-085-Marco-Garofalo-hiking-above-Helen-Lake-John-Muir-Trail-Kings-Canyon-N.P.-High-Sierra..jpg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1″ decoding=”async” width=”900″ height=”600″ src=”https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/JMT2-085-Marco-Garofalo-hiking-above-Helen-Lake-John-Muir-Trail-Kings-Canyon-N.P.-High-Sierra..jpg?resize=900%2C600&ssl=1″ alt=”A backpacker hiking the John Muir Trail above Helen Lake in Kings Canyon N.P., High Sierra.” class=”wp-image-54840″ srcset=”https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/JMT2-085-Marco-Garofalo-hiking-above-Helen-Lake-John-Muir-Trail-Kings-Canyon-N.P.-High-Sierra..jpg?resize=1024%2C683&ssl=1 1024w, https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/JMT2-085-Marco-Garofalo-hiking-above-Helen-Lake-John-Muir-Trail-Kings-Canyon-N.P.-High-Sierra..jpg?resize=300%2C200&ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside
Did you miss our previous article…
https://mansbrand.com/crs-28-mission-control-audio/

Continue Reading

Frontier Adventure

CRS-28 Mission Control Audio

Published

12 hours ago

on

June 5, 2023

By

hqdefault 2

hqdefault 3

This is the vehicle trajectory and mission control audio without any additional commentary. There may be very long periods of silence. For our full hosted webcast, visit

Did you miss our previous article…
https://mansbrand.com/photo-gallery-36-gorgeous-backcountry-lakes/

Continue Reading

Frontier Adventure

Photo Gallery: 36 Gorgeous Backcountry Lakes

Published

14 hours ago

on

June 5, 2023

By

Wind4 016

By Michael Lanza

Water makes up about 60 percent of our bodies—and, I suspect, 100 percent of our hearts. We crave it not only physically, for survival, but emotionally, for spiritual rejuvenation. We love playing in it for hours as children and we paddle and swim in it as adults. We’re drawn by the calming effects of sitting beside a stream or lake in a beautiful natural setting, an experience that possesses a certain je ne sais quoi—a quality difficult to describe, but that we can all feel.

And nothing beats taking a swim in a gorgeous backcountry lake.

I’ve come across quite a few wonderful backcountry lakes over more than three decades of exploring wilderness—including about 10 years as the Northwest Editor of Backpacker magazine and even longer running this blog. I’ve just updated and expanded this list of my favorites to give you some eye candy as well as ideas for future adventures—and perhaps compare against your list of favorite backcountry lakes.

Wind4 016 1
Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Join The Big Outside to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Click here for my e-guides to classic backpacking trips. Click here to learn how I can help you plan your next trip.

Click on the links to my stories in these brief writeups to learn more about each of these trips. Much of this story is free for anyone to read, but reading the entire story requires a paid subscription. See my Custom Trip Planning page to learn how I can help you plan a trip to any of these lakes.

If you know some gorgeous lakes that are not on my list, please suggest them in the comments section below this story. I try to respond to all comments.

Here’s to your next peaceful moment beside a gorgeous lake deep in the mountains somewhere.

Elizabeth Lake in Glacier National Park.
” data-image-caption=”Early morning at Elizabeth Lake in Glacier National Park. Click photo to learn how I can help you plan your Glacier trip.
” data-medium-file=”https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Gla6-018-Elizabeth-Lake-in-Glacier-National-Park.-2.jpg?fit=300%2C200&ssl=1″ data-large-file=”https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Gla6-018-Elizabeth-Lake-in-Glacier-National-Park.-2.jpg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1″ decoding=”async” width=”900″ height=”600″ src=”https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Gla6-018-Elizabeth-Lake-in-Glacier-National-Park.-2.jpg?resize=900%2C600&ssl=1″ alt=”Elizabeth Lake in Glacier National Park.” class=”wp-image-38774″ srcset=”https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Gla6-018-Elizabeth-Lake-in-Glacier-National-Park.-2.jpg?resize=1024%2C683&ssl=1 1024w, https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Gla6-018-Elizabeth-Lake-in-Glacier-National-Park.-2.jpg?resize=300%2C200&ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Gla6-018-Elizabeth-Lake-in-Glacier-National-Park.-2.jpg?resize=768%2C512&ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Gla6-018-Elizabeth-Lake-in-Glacier-National-Park.-2.jpg?resize=1080%2C720&ssl=1 1080w, https://i0.wp.com/thebigoutside.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Gla6-018-Elizabeth-Lake-in-Glacier-National-Park.-2.jpg?w=1200&ssl=1 1200w” sizes=”(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px” data-recalc-dims=”1″ />Elizabeth Lake in Glacier National Park.

Elizabeth Lake, Glacier National
Did you miss our previous article…
https://mansbrand.com/astronomers-are-searching-for-a-galaxy-wide-transmitter-beacon-at-the-center-of-the-milky-way/

Continue Reading

Trending