Jaw-dropping Jupiter and its moon Io as seen by NASA’s Juno

NASA’s Juno spacecraft has sent back another batch of fascinating images of the fifth planet from the sun. On December 28, 2024, during its 68th flyby of Jupiter, the school bus-sized probe captured stunning images of Jupiter’s dynamic atmosphere and the fiery surface of its moon, Io.

The data, sent back as Juno entered its final year of exploration, was downloaded — as always — by a team of dedicated citizen scientists. By piecing together data from JunoCam—a two-megapixel camera that captures images as Juno spins—their spectacular work is what you see here.

During the 68th years vegetables— its closest point to Jupiter during an orbit — Juno rose several thousand miles above the planet’s cloud tops. This vantage point enabled its instruments, including JunoCam, to capture detailed images of Jupiter’s swirling storms and intricate cloud bands.

Juno also made a close approach to Io, the most active volcanic body in the solar system. Io’s surface, pockmarked by erupting volcanoes and lava flows, provided a striking contrast to Jupiter’s colorful cloud patterns. It’s just the latest of several close flybys of Io by Juno that have helped scientists learn more about the mysterious moon.

Last month, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California revealed that Juno had revealed groundbreaking details about Io. The Moon is so volcanic because of tidal forces caused by gravitational interactions with Jupiter and its other large moons, Europa and Ganymede.

Using its microwave radiometer, Juno detected heat rising from Io’s surface, identifying lava lakes and active volcanoes reaching thousands of degrees Fahrenheit. The data highlight how tidal heating – a constant push and pull of gravity – creates immense internal friction, fueling Io’s intense volcanic activity.

Juno’s close passes have also allowed scientists to map Io’s magnetic field and plasma interactions, revealing how charged particles from Io contribute to Jupiter’s massive magnetosphere.

Launched in 2011 and arriving at Jupiter in 2016, Juno has spent nearly a decade expanding scientists’ knowledge of the solar system’s largest planet.

Originally planned as a short-term mission, Juno has defied expectations, surprisingly surviving Jupiter’s harsh radiation and extreme conditions. However, the mission is now nearing completion. A deliberate dive into Jupiter’s atmosphere in September 2025 will protect Jupiter’s other possibly habitable moons, especially Europa.

Europa will soon be examined by NASA’s Europa Clipper mission, now three months into a six-year journey to probe its icy surface and subsurface ocean, a prime candidate for harboring extraterrestrial life.

After its arrival in 2030, Europa Clipper will conduct nearly 50 close flybys of the Moon, mapping its surface, analyzing its icy crust and studying its thin atmosphere.

Although launched in April 2023, the European Space Agency’s slower-moving Jupiter ICy moons Explorer (JUICE) mission is slated to orbit Jupiter in 2031. It will conduct studies of the three moons Jupiter’s icy giants—Ganymede, Europa, and Callisto. all of which are thought to harbor subsurface oceans, making them prime targets in their search for extraterrestrial life.

I wish you clear skies and open eyes.