A new explanation for why Jupiter's moon has splendid dunes RutgersU NatureComms
Current scientific understanding dictates that dunes, by their nature, are hills or ridges of sand piled up by the wind. And scientists in previous studies of Io, while describing its surface as containing some dune-like features, concluded the ridges could not be dunes since the forces from winds on Io are weak due to the moon's low-density atmosphere.
"This work tells us that the environments in which dunes are found are considerably more varied than the classical, endless desert landscapes on parts of Earth or on the fictional planet Arrakis in 'Dune,'" McDonald said. The Galileo mission, which lasted from 1989—2003, logged so many scientific firsts that researchers to this day are still studying the data it collected. One of the major insights gleaned from the data was the high extent of volcanic activity on Io—so much so that its volcanoes repeatedly and rapidly resurface the little world.and sand, flowing"effusive" lava streams, and"snows" of sulfur dioxide.
Once the researchers devised a mechanism by which the dunes could form, they looked to photos of Io's surface taken by the Galileo spacecraft for more proof. The spacing of the crests and the height-to-width ratios they observed were consistent with trends for dunes seen on Earth and other planets. "Work like this really allows us to understand how the cosmos works," said Lujendra Ojha, a co-author and an assistant professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences."In the end, in planetary science, that is what we are trying to do."
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