Io's Giant Volcano Pele
Explanation:
Io has some very large volcanoes. One of
the largest is evident near the center of the
above photograph
and named
Pele,
for the mythological Polynesian fire goddess. The
Galileo spacecraft
now orbiting Jupiter took this
picture of
Jupiter's
most active moon
in June, although it was released just last week. Evident around
Pele is a large red ring, thought to be evidence of
recent
volcanic activity.
The red color indicates the presence of
Sulfur,
although how the Sulfur was produced is not precisely known.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
