Mapping Io’s Hidden Heat With NASA’s Juno

NASA has released new thermal maps of Jupiter's moon Io, created using data captured by the Microwave Radiometer aboard the Juno spacecraft. According to NASA, the instrument collected measurements during two close flybys in late two thousand twenty-three and early two thousand twenty-four, scanning Io's northern hemisphere, mid-latitudes, and equatorial regions from roughly nine hundred thirty miles away. The spacecraft's spinning motion—rotating twice per minute—created overlapping data patterns as it passed. The resulting maps provide detailed thermal coverage of the regions where Io permanently faces Jupiter.

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