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Blue flares and eruptions on the limb of crescent Io
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Ancora flares (di colore blu, questa volta), riprese da una distanza approssimativa di 1,2 milioni di kilometri da Io.
La ripresa, in questo caso (e si tratta comunque di un'immagine di splendida qualità e fattura), è stata effettuata dalla Sonda Voyager 2 il 9 Luglio 1979. Ci pensate? Più di 25 anni fa...
Voyager 2 took this picture of Io on the evening of July 9, 1979, from a range of 1.2 million kilometers. On the limb of Io are two blue volcanic eruption plumes about 100 kilometers high. These two plumes were first seen by Voyager 1 in March, 1979, and are designated Plume 5 (upper) and Plume 6 (lower). They have apparently been erupting for a period of at least 4 months and probably longer. A total of six plumes have been seen by Voyager 2, all of which were first seen by Voyager 1. The largest plume viewed by Voyager 1 (Plume 1) is no longer erupting. Plume 4 was not viewed on the edge of the moon's disc by Voyager 2 and therefore it is not known whether or not it is still erupting. This picture is one of a series taken to monitor the eruptions over a 6 hour period.
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