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Without the spacecraft Galileo, we wouldn’t know nearly as much as we do about the planet Jupiter.
Launched in 1989, the unmanned spacecraft was tasked with probing and gathering data regarding Jupiter and its surrounding moons, of which there are 63 confirmed.
Named after famed astronomer Galileo Galilei, who discovered the four largest moons surrounding Jupiter, the spacecraft completed 35 orbits around Jupiter and provided scientists at NASA with a wealth of information.
Although Galileo’s mission was terminated in 2003, data analysis is still underway and new information is still being discovered.
Studying Galileo’s data has given us a much better understanding of Jupiter, the largest and one of the most fascinating of the planets that make up our solar system. Some of the more interesting and notable discoveries attributed to the spacecraft Galileo include the following:
- Volcanic activity present on Jupiter’s moon Io is similar to volcanic activity found on our own planet (although there is a lot more of it on Io). This activity is a result of an ocean of magma located below the moon’s surface.
- There may be oceans located beneath the layers of ice that make up the surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa.
- Jupiter is home to violent thunderstorms considerably larger than the ones we experience on Earth.
Galileo’s mission to Jupiter was ended in September of 2003 when scientists deliberately sent the spacecraft hurtling into Jupiter’s atmosphere, destroying it. This was done because Galileo was nearly out of the propellant needed to remain operational, and scientists at NASA were concerned that the spacecraft, if not intentionally destroyed, might accidentally cause damage to Jupiter’s moon Europa.
