On Saturday, 3 February, the NASA SolarSystem Juno spacecraft made its final close flyby of Jupiter's moon Io. This second flyby, similar to the previous flyby on 30 December 2023, took place at a distance of about 930 miles (1,500 kilometres), or the distance from New York City to Orlando, Florida. Io is sandwiched between Jupiter's strong gravity and the smaller gravity of two neighbouring moons, churning its interior and creating eruptions and lava lakes that cover its surface. The twin flights are designed to provide new insights into how Io's volcanic engine works and whether a global ocean of magma exists beneath Io's rocky, mountainous surface terrain.

Join mission experts for a NASA Science Live chat, live-streamed Q&A on Wednesday 7 February at 13:00 ET (1800 UTC) to discuss flights, close-up imagery and new science. NASA Science Live will be available on Facebook, X, YouTube and the ad-free live streaming platform NASA+.

Image description:

Jupiter's moon Io seen in the darkness of space. Half of the moon is illuminated by sunlight from the right, while the night side on the left is dimly lit by reflected light from Jupiter. Coloured in shades of orange, brown and yellow, the Moon's surface is pitted with circular volcanic calderas, irregularly shaped lava flows and sharp mountains casting shadows.