Io in True Color
The strangest moon in the
Solar System is bright yellow.
This
picture, showing Io's true colors, was taken in 1999 July by the
Galileo spacecraft currently orbiting Jupiter.
Io's colors derive from
sulfur
and molten silicate rock.
The unusual
surface of Io
is kept very young by its system of
active volcanoes.
The intense
tidal gravity of
Jupiter stretches
Io and
damps wobbles caused by Jupiter's other
Galilean moons.
The resulting
friction greatly heats
Io's interior, causing
molten rock to explode through the surface.
Io's volcanoes
are so active that they are effectively turning the
whole moon inside out.
Some of
Io's volcanic lava is so hot it
glows in the dark.