Jupiter: Nasa's probe captures image of Io's volcanos

Volcanoes, lava flows and lava lakes can all be seen on this image, taken with a special infrared camera

Have you ever wondered what volcanos look like in space?

Nasa thinks it has a pretty good idea - one of its space probes is currently looking down at Io, one of Jupiter's moons.

Io is covered in volcanos, and it's the most volcanically active world in the Solar System.

The probe has already taken some incredible pictures of Jupiter and its moons.

Io: The moon on fire

This image taken by Nasa's Juno spacecraft shows Jupiter with some of its moons

Io is the fourth-largest moon in the solar system. It has over 400 active volcanoes on its surface.

The volcanoes were formed by friction inside the moon as it was pulled between Jupiter and the planet's other huge moons.

Because of this high friction in the centre, there's also huge mountain peaks on the surface.

Some of them are even as tall as Mount Everest!

A sea of lava

Good job Juno! Nasa has given Juno an extended mission because it was doing so well

Nasa's probe Juno is currently taking pictures of Jupiter - the largest planet in the Solar System - and its moons.

Over the next year, Juno will come much closer to Io's surface, so we can expect some more impressive images in 2023!

The team behind Juno want to map the volcanoes on Io, and try to investigate the lava flow there.

Scientists want to know if there is a huge sea of lava, or if lava could be spotted around in different areas.

Jupiter's other moons

The mosaic and geologic maps of Jupiter's moon Ganymede were made using images taken by NASA's Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft and NASA's Galileo spacecraft.

Juno has also taken a close look at Ganymede - Jupiter's biggest moon.

Ganymede is covered in ice - and the probe was able to look down into the icy layers using special technology.

Nasa thinks that Ganymede, and another moon - Europa - could have a huge ocean of water underneath the ice, which could even hold life.

In 2024, Nasa's satellite Clipper will orbit Europa, and have a closer look at the potential water.