Galileo's First Images of Jupiter and the Galilean Satellites

M J S Belton; J W Head III; A P Ingersoll; R Greeley; A S McEwen; K P Klaasen; D Senske; R Pappalardo; G Collins; A R Vasavada; R Sullivan; D Simonelli; P Geissler; M H Carr; M E Davies; J Veverka; P J Gierasch; D Banfield; M Bell; C R Chapman; C Anger; R Greenberg; G Neukum; C B Pilcher; R F Beebe; J A Burns; F Fanale; W Ip; T V Johnson; D Morrison; J Moore; G S Orton; P Thomas; R A West

doi:10.1126/science.274.5286.377

Galileo's First Images of Jupiter and the Galilean Satellites

Science. 1996 Oct 18;274(5286):377-85. doi: 10.1126/science.274.5286.377.

Authors

M J S Belton^{1 2}, J W Head III³, A P Ingersoll⁴, R Greeley⁵, A S McEwen⁶, K P Klaasen⁷, D Senske⁷, R Pappalardo³, G Collins³, A R Vasavada⁴, R Sullivan⁵, D Simonelli⁸, P Geissler⁶, M H Carr⁹, M E Davies¹⁰, J Veverka⁸, P J Gierasch⁸, D Banfield⁸, M Bell⁸, C R Chapman¹¹, C Anger¹², R Greenberg⁶, G Neukum¹³, C B Pilcher¹⁴, R F Beebe¹⁵, J A Burns⁸, F Fanale¹⁶, W Ip¹⁷, T V Johnson⁷, D Morrison¹, J Moore¹, G S Orton⁷, P Thomas⁸, R A West⁷

Affiliations

¹ M. J. S. Belton, National Optical Astronomy Observatories, 950 North Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
² * To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: belton@noao.edu
³ J. W. Head III, R. Pappalardo, G. Collins, Department of Geological Science, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA.
⁴ A. P. Ingersoll and A. R. Vasavada, Department of Geology and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
⁵ R. Greeley and R. Sullivan, Department of Geology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1414, USA.
⁶ A. S. McEwen, P. Geissler, R. Greenberg, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 87721, USA.
⁷ K. P. Klaasen, D. Senske, T. V. Johnson, G. S. Orton, R. A. West, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA.
⁸ D. Simonelli, J. Veverka, P. J. Gierasch, D. Banfield, M. Bell, J. A. Burns, P. Thomas, Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
⁹ M. H. Carr, U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA.
¹⁰ M. E. Davies, RAND, Santa Monica, CA 90406, USA.
¹¹ C. R. Chapman, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA.
¹² C. Anger, ITTRES Ltd, Calgary, Alberta TIY 5Z6, Canada.
¹³ G. Neukum, Institute for Planetary Exploration, Deutsche Forschunganstalt für Luft und Raumfahrt, Berlin, Germany.
¹⁴ C. B. Pilcher, National Aeronautical and Space Administration, Washington, DC 20546, USA.
¹⁵ R. F. Beebe, Department of Astronomy, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 88003, USA.
¹⁶ F. Fanale, Institute for Geophysics, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA.
¹⁷ W. Ip, Max Planck Institute für Aeronomie, Lindau, Germany. D. Morrison and J. Moore, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.

PMID: 17813508
DOI: 10.1126/science.274.5286.377

Abstract

The first images of Jupiter, Io, Europa, and Ganymede from the Galileo spacecraft reveal new information about Jupiter's Great Red Spot (GRS) and the surfaces of the Galilean satellites. Features similar to clusters of thunderstorms were found in the GRS. Nearby wave structures suggest that the GRS may be a shallow atmospheric feature. Changes in surface color and plume distribution indicate differences in resurfacing processes near hot spots on Io. Patchy emissions were seen while Io was in eclipse by Jupiter. The outer margins of prominent linear markings (triple bands) on Europa are diffuse, suggesting that material has been vented from fractures. Numerous small circular craters indicate localized areas of relatively old surface. Pervasive brittle deformation of an ice layer appears to have formed grooves on Ganymede. Dark terrain unexpectedly shows distinctive albedo variations to the limit of resolution.