Moons of Jupiter Puzzle
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On a clear night using a telescope or powerful binoculars, you can get a glimpse of 4 of Jupiter's moons. These moons: Io, Ganymede, Callisto and Europa are often referred to as the Galilean moons, since they were first viewed by Galileo in 1610. These four moons have very different characteristics. Ganymede and Callisto are heavily cratered moons, with possible ice layers deep underneath their crusts. Io has a lot of volcanic activity, while Europa is the smoothest body in the solar system with an icy surface crust. The Galileo probe, currently in orbit around Jupiter is studying these moons closely to learn more about them. The Hubble Space Telescope has also taken detailed photos of these moons - much more detailed than we can see from our backyards here on Earth!
Finding Jupiter with a Telescope
During certain months, Jupiter is visible on clear nights. At these times, due to the varied revolutions of the moons around Jupiter, you may not be able to see all four moons at once. The moons mostly appear either as points of light or shadows on Jupiter's surface.
Astronomy.com (Northern Hemisphere only; registration required) and
Sky and Telescope (Northern and Southern Hemispheres) magazine's web sites both have monthly sky charts that will enable you determine if Jupiter is visible from your location. If you can't see Jupiter, NASA has a
web page that shows you an approximation of the view you would get from a telescope on Earth.
Galilean Moons Challenge!
We have adapted this activity for families from one found in the book
The Moons of Jupiter, which was developed by the Lawrence Hall of Science for their Great Explorations in Math and Science school curriculum program.
Materials
Even if you don't have a telescope you can take this challenge! You will need:
- A piece of paper
- Something to color with - pencils, markers or crayons. Color plays a big part in this activity!
Instructions
- Get a piece of paper and something to color with - pencils, markers or crayons.
- Draw 2 circles on each side of one piece of paper, so that you have a total of four circles: 2 on one side, 2 on the other. Each circle should be approximately 1/2 of one side of the page. Label each of the circles with one of the names of the moons — Io, Europa, Callisto and Ganymede.
- Use the following descriptions to draw what you think each of the four moons looks like. Hint: read the whole description before you start drawing!
Io (pronounced ee'-yo or eye'-oh)
- Io is the most active volcanic body in the solar system.
- One of Io's volcanos, Pele, ejects gas and dust over 250 miles above the surface of the moon.
- There are no impact craters on Io, as the surface is constantly being recreated by volcanic activity.
- The surface is red, yellow, orange and black, due to the sulfur common on Io's surface. Sulfur smells like rotten eggs!
Europa (pronounced yur-oh'-puh)
- Europa has the smoothest surface in the solar system.
- There are no visible impact craters on Europa.
- The surface is criss-crossed by dark lines. Astronomers believe these are cracks in a thin icy crust.
Ganymede (pronounced gan'-eh-meed)
- Ganymede's surface is made up of a mixture of ice and rocks.
- Bright spots are probably impact craters that reveal ice under the rocky surface.
- Light brown areas show long ridges of mountains and valleys.
Callisto (pronounced kuh-lis'-toh)
- The surface of Callisto is basically dark and is composed of dust and rock.
- The surface is covered with impact craters
- Larger bright spots can be seen where the ice under the surface has been exposed by the impact of large meteors. The largest bright spot is 186 miles in diameter.
- When you're finished drawing, look at these photos from the Hubble Space Telescope and try to guess which moon is in each picture.
Resources
Visit these NASA Web sites about the Galilean moons to see more photos and read more information.
Credits
Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum Education Department, 2000