Io Archives

Joint Dynamical-geophysical Evidence For A Limit Cycle In The Galilean Moons

by Keith CowingAugust 7, 2026August 7, 2026

[astro-ph.EP] Io, Europa, and Ganymede orbit in the Laplace mean-motion resonance, where their orbital and thermochemical evolution are strongly coupled [1-5]. Forced eccentricities sustain tidal dissipation, powering Io’s volcanism and […]

Lava World Recon: Juno Measures Subsurface Temperature Of Io

by Keith CowingAugust 2, 2026August 2, 2026

[SwRI] NASA’s Juno mission has made the first direct measurements of the temperature below the surface of Jupiter’s moon Io, which reveal significant heating in the upper few feet of […]

The north polar region of Jupiter’s volcanic moon Io was captured by NASA’s Juno during the spacecraft’s 57th close pass of the gas giant on Dec. 30, 2023. Data from that flyby and one on Feb. 3, 2024, is helping scientists understand Io’s interior. Image data: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS Image processing by Gerald Eichstädt

Lava World Recon: Juno Studies Io’s Volcanoes

by Keith CowingJuly 23, 2026July 23, 2026

[NASA] NASA’s Juno mission has provided the first measurements of the temperature below the surface of Jupiter’s moon Io, revealing significant heating within the shallow subsurface of the most volcanically […]

Ganymede and Callisto As Seen By Voyager -- NASA

Jupiter

The Recent Crossing Of The 7:3 Resonance Between Ganymede And Callisto

by Keith CowingJuly 10, 2026July 10, 2026

[astro-ph.EP] Io, Europa and Ganymede are locked in the well-known Laplace resonance, while Callisto is not, even though it is very close to the 7:3 mean motion resonance with Ganymede. […]

A new SwRI study has raised doubts about the existence of water vapor plumes on Jupiter’s moon Europa -- NASA

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Enceladus, Europa, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Io, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

SwRI Findings Reconsider The Existence Of Europa’s Vapor Plumes

by Keith CowingMay 19, 2026May 19, 2026

Looking back at 14 years of Hubble telescope data for Jupiter’s moon Europa has given Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) scientists a better understanding of its tenuous atmosphere. The findings have […]

Interior, surface and atmosphere visualisation of Europa, Enceladus, Triton, Io, and exoIo. Best-estimate plume heights are displayed to scale. Individual scales are visible for interior structures. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Enceladus, Europa, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Icy Worlds, Io, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Status Report, Triton, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Active Moons In Our Solar System And Beyond — Io, Europa, Enceladus, Triton, and Exomoons

by Keith CowingApril 15, 2026April 15, 2026

The outgassing signatures of Io, Europa, Enceladus, Triton, and Io-like exomoons are the focus of this review chapter. The rocky volcanic world of Io is unique in our Solar System, […]

Artist’s impression of the simulations conducted in this research. Jupiter (lower left) has a strong magnetic field which creates a cavity in its circumplanetary disk. Saturn (upper right) lacks a strong magnetic field so its circumplanetary disk evolves without a cavity. Credit: Yuri I. Fujii/L-INSIGHT [Kyoto University], Illustrator: Shinichiro Kinoshita

Astrogeology, Callisto, Enceladus, Europa, Ganymede, Gas Giants, Icy Worlds, Io, Jupiter, Magnetic Fields, Electromagnetism, bioelectricity,, Press Release, Rhea, Saturn, Titan, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

How Jupiter Cultivated More Large Moons Than Saturn

by Keith CowingApril 8, 2026April 8, 2026

The two largest planets in our Solar System, Jupiter and Saturn, also have the largest satellite systems, or the most moons. At present, Jupiter’s reported moon count stands at more […]

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Io, Jupiter, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Status Report

Analysis Of Io’s tidal Response As A Function Of The Properties Of The Partially Molten Layer

by Keith CowingMarch 22, 2026March 22, 2026

Io’s internal heat is generated by Jupiter-driven tidal dissipation and Laplace resonance. This energy partially melts the mantle, but the melt fraction, depth, and spatial distribution of dissipation remain poorly […]

New research conducted by SwRI, Aix-Marseille University and the Institute for Advanced Studies demonstrated how complex organic molecules (COMs) could have formed in the protoplanetary disk represented here. Interstellar ultraviolet particles (orange arrows) irradiate the disk of materials, providing a range of conditions that could trigger the organic chemistry essential to COM creation as the icy grains migrate radially and vertically in the disk. A similar transport and irradiation process operates within Jupiter’s circumplanetary disk. -- SwRI

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Callisto, Europa, Ganymede, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Io, Jupiter, Press Release

New Insights Into The Potential For Life In The Jovian System

by Keith CowingFebruary 23, 2026February 23, 2026

Southwest Research Institute was part of an international team that demonstrated how complex organic molecules (COMs), key chemical precursors to life, could have been incorporated into Jupiter’s Galilean moons during […]

Two-dimensional temperature map of the disk after 280 kyr of evolution. The averaged trajectories of particles over this period, plotted along the 𝑟 and 𝑧 axes, are shown in white. The panels present the trajectories of particles with sizes of 1 cm and 1 𝜇m, released at initial disk temperatures of 20 K (panels a and b) and 80 K (panels c and d). Green triangles indicate the initial positions of the particles, while green crosses mark their final positions. In each panel, the detailed trajectory of an individual particle is highlighted within the square on the right. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Callisto, Europa, Ganymede, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Io, Jupiter, Status Report

Delivery Of Complex Organic Molecules To The System Of Jupiter

by Keith CowingFebruary 20, 2026February 20, 2026

Complex organic molecules are key markers of molecular diversity, and their formation conditions in protoplanetary disks remain an active area of research. These molecules have been detected on a variety […]