Enhanced picture by Jackie Branc (CC-BY) based mostly on photos courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS of … [+] Jupiter throughout Juno’s 62nd perijove on June 12, 2024.NASA / SwRI / MSSS / Jackie Branc © CC BY
Enhanced picture by Kevin M. Gill (CC-BY) based mostly on photos courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS of Jupiter throughout Juno’s 62nd perijove on June 12, 2024.
NASA’s billion-dollar spacecraft, Juno, has despatched again extra spectacular imagery from the Jupiter system.
The solar-powered probe has been in orbit of the large planet since 2016. Its extremely elliptical orbit means it spends most of its time a great distance from Jupiter’s cloud tops. Roughly as soon as every month, it swings near the planet’s polar areas, after which its digicam is switched on.
Enhanced picture by Jackie Branc (CC-BY) based mostly on photos courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS of … [+] Jupiter throughout Juno’s 62nd perijove on June 12, 2024.NASA / SwRI / MSSS / Jackie Branc © CC BY
June 14 noticed Juno’s 62nd perijove (shut flyby), and within the days since, the info collected by JunoCam has been transmitted again to Earth by way of NASA’s Deep Area Community. Though the Juno mission has no devoted imaging group, citizen scientists worldwide have instantaneous entry to the uncooked information from JunoCam. A few of these photos are collected right here.
New photos returned embrace a few of Io, a moon of Jupiter and probably the most volcanic physique within the photo voltaic system. One picture seems to seize a sulfurous plume reaching tons of of miles into house. The moon is tugged in numerous instructions throughout its orbit by the gravity of Jupiter and its three different massive moons. The frictional warmth buildup in its inside causes fixed and widespread volcanic exercise. Io was imaged lately from Earth.
Enhanced picture by Jackie Branc (CC-BY) based mostly on photos courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS of … [+] Jupiter throughout Juno’s 62nd perijove on June 12, 2024.NASA / SwRI / MSSS / Jackie Branc © CC BY
Juno carries 11 science devices designed to review the Jovian system. Throughout its mission, it discovered proof of storms as large as Earth and of a chaotic magnetic subject. Jupiter’s acquainted pinkish bands attain deep into its environment, and the fuel planet’s core is bigger than beforehand thought.
Since Juno arrived at Jupiter in 2016, it has carried out shut flybys of three of Jupiter’s big Galilean moons—Europa, Ganymede and Io—with JunoCam taking a few of the best-ever photos of those worlds. Nonetheless, it’s been unable to go to its fourth big moon, Callisto.Enhanced picture by Kevin M. Gill (CC-BY) based mostly on photos courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS of … [+] Jupiter throughout Juno’s 62nd perijove on June 12, 2024.NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill © CC B
Callisto is not going to stay unexplored for lengthy. With the demise of Juno anticipated subsequent 12 months, there shall be no spacecraft in orbit of the large planet for some years. Nonetheless, two will arrive within the early 2030s. NASA’s Europa Clipper will tour Jupiter’s moons in 2030, specializing in Europa, whereas the European Area Company’s JUpiter ICy moons Explorer will arrive in 2031, flying near Callisto 21 instances earlier than lastly going into orbit round Ganymede.
Juno’s 63rd perijove will happen on July 17, and its mission shall be accomplished on September 15, 2025, when Juno will carry out a “demise dive” into the fuel big throughout its 76th perijove.
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