Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Probe Shows Jupiter Moon 'Puking' Into Space

Posted by Zonk on from the intergalactic-bodily-fluids dept.

Tablizer writes "The New Horizons probe caught the moon Io in the act of 'barfing' into space. A five-frame sequence from the New Horizons probe captured a beautiful plume of ash from Io's Tvashtar volcano. "Snapped by the probe's Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) as the spacecraft flew past Jupiter earlier this year, this first-ever "movie" of an Io plume clearly shows motion in the cloud of volcanic debris, which extends 330 kilometers (200 miles) above the moon's surface ... The appearance and motion of the plume is remarkably similar to an ornamental fountain on Earth, replicated on a gigantic scale.""

152 comments

  1. Dizzy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's probably just dizzy from all that spinning.

    1. Re:Dizzy by Kwiik · · Score: 1

      sounds like it got as drunk as I did last night
      I wonder if it's hang over is as terrible..

      --
      Vehicle Stars used car search is my current project
    2. Re:Dizzy by DiamondGeezer · · Score: 4, Informative

      Since its tidally locked to Jupiter (just like the Moon is to the Earth), then there's not much spinning to be concerned about.

      Io is heated continually by tidal friction, leaving its core molten and its surface full of lava lakes and the vents and calderas of active volcanoes. The tide raising force of Jupiter raises the surface of Io in some places by several meters.

      --
      Tubby or not tubby. Fat is the question
    3. Re:Dizzy by hazem · · Score: 1

      Since its tidally locked to Jupiter (just like the Moon is to the Earth), then there's not much spinning to be concerned about.

      Io appears to be rotating. Look at the features as they move past where the light and dark meet (I know there's a word for this - ahh, terminator). You can see features moving across the terminator fairly quickly in this 8 minute film clip. Either the light source is moving or the moon is rotating.

      Am I missing something? Or is it merely that the rotation has little effect on what is happening here?

    4. Re:Dizzy by KingArthur10 · · Score: 2, Informative

      Tidal locking means that the same face is always facing the planet (or the sun, in the case of a planet). This means that the moon is rotating at the same speed as it orbits the planet. Since Io orbits Jupiter every 1.769 earth days, it also makes a complete rotation every 1.769 days, also. There is definitely plenty of spinning going on for that moon.

      --
      I came, I saw, She conquered.
    5. Re:Dizzy by ArsenneLupin · · Score: 1

      Or, Ganymede is secretly assfucking it while Jupiter is not looking. Expect Ganymede being ejected from Jupiter's orbit real soon now!

    6. Re:Dizzy by loganrapp · · Score: 1
      Ugh, "Drops of Jupiter in her hair?"


      That song suddenly took a dark turn.

    7. Re:Dizzy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Since its tidally locked to Jupiter (just like the Moon is to the Earth), then there's not much spinning to be concerned about.

      So you think that our moon isn't rotating?

    8. Re:Dizzy by Miseph · · Score: 1

      Considering it projectile vomited hard enough to go orbital... yeah, I'd say it's at least as bad.

      --
      Try not to take me more seriously than I take myself.
    9. Re:Dizzy by ari_j · · Score: 2, Informative
      While someone else pointed out that Io rotates on the same period as its orbit, don't forget that the photos were taken by a probe as it flew past Jupiter - in other words, the camera was far from stationary. I don't know the path that the probe took, but regardless of that, flying past a sphere gives the impression that the sphere is rotating. In summary:
      1. Io is rotating, contrary to the comment that asserted that tidal locking == no rotation (even though that's clearly not what he meant, it is what he started out saying
      2. The appearance of rotation in the animated GIF in TFA is due to a combination of Io's rotation and the probe's movement relative to it; either one on its own would be sufficient to make it look like that
    10. Re:Dizzy by rbanffy · · Score: 1

      You know... This troll was not particularly funny the first time. I know you must find it funny, but real Mac users usually have a good sense of humor and, since you don't, I suppose you got your first Mac to match your first iPod, in a time they were no longer beige. You felt immediately superior, something you clearly did not when you used commodity PCs. I warn you this feeling of superiority is only skin deep and having a Mac will not increase your chances of getting laid. Nothing will.

      It's not something you buy at a store, child. It's something you are.

      And you, obviously, are not.

      --
      http://www.dieblinkenlights.com
    11. Re:Dizzy by heinousjay · · Score: 1

      real Mac users usually have a good sense of humor

      Are these the Mac users who aren't on the Internet? The ones I've met online have certainly been a humorless bunch about their chosen corporate masters, for sure.

      --
      Slashdot - where whining about luck is the new way to make the world you want.
    12. Re:Dizzy by bytesex · · Score: 1

      You're right that he's probably a very unhappy person, but there's one correction I'd like to make. That is; he obviously did get laid - once. He always links to the photograph he took immediately afterward to prove it. Unfortunately he was so revolted or nervous at the time, that he emptied his stomach on the floor right next to her, the poor girl. However, she looks quite unconscious in the picture, so maybe she never noticed.

      --
      Religion is what happens when nature strikes and groupthink goes wrong.
    13. Re:Dizzy by djasbestos · · Score: 1

      But why would surface features visibly cross the terminator if it weren't rotating ever so slightly? If it were simply motion of the spacecraft, the terminator would move as well...it didn't.

    14. Re:Dizzy by ari_j · · Score: 1

      Good point. That can only happen by rotation relevant to the direction to the sun. (Interesting thought: is it possible to have a moon that never rotates relative to the sun?)

    15. Re:Dizzy by Exquisitor · · Score: 0

      I guess it is hard to tell wether Io is rotating or not because it depends on what point in the Universe you think is not rotating at all.

    16. Re:Dizzy by rbanffy · · Score: 1

      You must have met those who bought Macs because they felt themselves in disadvantage in other aspects of their lives. Those are fairly common, sadly.

      The Mac users who have "earned their apples" (and thus can call themselves "real Mac users") knew MacOS from the time it was called System and have a consciously, but never gratuitious, rebellious attitude inherited from those who preferred Apple IIs to CP/M and, later, IBM PC-lookalikes. Those usually have a good sense of humour. They are also in their late 30s and 40s.

      A Real Mac User would never, ever, post such thing because we really see no point in doing that.

      --
      http://www.dieblinkenlights.com
    17. Re:Dizzy by ari_j · · Score: 1

      Does my fake Rolex count? ;)

    18. Re:Dizzy by heinousjay · · Score: 1

      I think you're just tooting your own horn and trying to make your choices seem more intelligent. Your explanation certainly doesn't match up with my experience in any way.

      Nothing to worry about, though, it's a common human failing.

      --
      Slashdot - where whining about luck is the new way to make the world you want.
    19. Re:Dizzy by rbanffy · · Score: 1

      I can't say anything about your experience, but, along with the Mac users with deep psychological issues we have observed, there are also those Mac users who bought a Mac simply because it is prettier, more reliable and gets the job done.

      You know... There _are_ people around who really don't want to know much about computers and don't particularly enjoy playing with them - they just need them to work properly. Most of them end-up using Windows because they don't care what an OS is, because their corporate masters want it that way, because their fear there will be no software available or they just fear change and struggle with it because they don't know their e-life doesn't have to be miserable. Still, among those, there are people who think Windows is unbearably ugly (I certainly do), want no business with it and chose to have a Macintosh instead.

      For those, a Mac is a pretty smart choice - much better than going with either Linux or Windows.

      That said, I run Linux as my main OS, on an HP notebook that came with Vista installed, but that's because I run several Linux servers for clients and also develop software to run, mostly, under Linux. I love my Macs (I have a collection of them, along several other interesting computers and workstations, including a couple Apple IIs, an Amiga and an MSX), but I tend not to spend as much time with them as I did before. I used PCs and Macs in the late 80s and early 90s, spent some time with Windows, Solaris, AIX and IRIX (during the early web boom), experimented with MkLinux (on a 9500), switched back to Macs briefly because of OSX, and decided I would be better served by a package-managed Unix-like OS like Debian (Ubuntu, currently) than with the BSD-ish OSX.

      Happily, in my experience, Mac users like the one who started this thread are a minority. Most are well educated, well resolved and don't feel the need to justify their choices.

      --
      http://www.dieblinkenlights.com
    20. Re:Dizzy by DiamondGeezer · · Score: 1

      It's not rotating. The effect you're seeing is called libration plus the effect of the spacecraft moving away. If you take timelapse photos of the Moon then you can see libration in action

      --
      Tubby or not tubby. Fat is the question
  2. So... by Iwanowitch · · Score: 5, Funny

    So... The demotion of Pluto has finally reached Jupiter?

    --
    One CS student VS 893 DOS games: Let's play oldies
  3. "Puking" and "barfing"? by daveschroeder · · Score: 5, Insightful

    So, why does the summary title and text use the terms "puking" and "barfing" when the article itself doesn't make any such references? Gratuitous? "Submitter's license"?

    I mean, was that really necessary? Or is the story not interesting enough itself without toilet humor?

    1. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Jugalator · · Score: 5, Funny

      If I had uranus in my vicinity all day long, I'd be barfing too!

      Wait.. Maybe that comment wasn't what you were looking for :)

      --
      Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
    2. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by bushboy · · Score: 5, Funny

      I thought it was because of the high level of education in the USA?

      "Whooa dude, that Io's like, err, like, err, barfing dude! - hehhehhhehehehhehhe"
      "shwoaaah yeah, it's puking man! - kewl! - ehherrheehhheheh"

      --
      A slashdotting - you get the stick first and then the carrot !
    3. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by TopSpin · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I saw this story in Firehose and thought; interesting story, too bad the puerile wording will keep it off the front page...

      --
      Lurking at the bottom of the gravity well, getting old
    4. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by h00pla · · Score: 1, Troll
      You have, of course, totally overestimated the taste of the editors.

      --
      I've been swashdotted -- Elmer Fudd
    5. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      It is known as artistic license.

    6. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Daniel+Dvorkin · · Score: 1

      Agreed. The use of quotation marks in the submission really makes it sound like those words were used in the article itself.

      This may be a bit too much pop-psych, but I can't help but wonder if the desire to trivialize awesome natural events like this, Beavis-and-Butthead-style, comes from fear. A volcano with a 200-mile-high plume is not really the sort of thing the human mind handles very easily. I mean, we know what it is, and we can look at the pretty pictures on our screen and ooh and aah, but the caveman inside our heads is trembling at the wrath of the gods. Calling it "puking" makes it laughable, and therefore much less terrifying.

      --
      The correlation between ignorance of statistics and using "correlation is not causation" as an argument is close to 1.
    7. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Tablizer · · Score: 2, Insightful

      So, why does the summary title and text use the terms "puking" and "barfing" when the article itself doesn't make any such references? Gratuitous? "Submitter's license"?

      What rule says that titles and summaries must be verbatim?

      I mean, was that really necessary? Or is the story not interesting enough itself without toilet humor?

      It provides an interesting visual metaphor. Not everybody likes everything dry and clinical all the time. Otherwise, we wouldn't have overlord jokes.

      -The Submitter- (but not the Decider)

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
    8. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Tablizer · · Score: 1, Troll

      I thought it was because of the high level of education in the USA?

      You assume that other nations don't like having a little word-play fun. Getting into college and reading for enjoyment are two different things.

      And frankly, critizing the US education motivation is somewhat unfair because becomming a business owner or biz manager pays so much more *compared to* science and math in the US that there is far more motivation in those countries to focus on sci-math in the schools: they don't have the options we do. Outsourcing brainy work with 3rd-world wages hasn't helped the situation either. Our schools are training us in skills that are being offshored. We need sales skills, not Calculus, to compete *in* America.

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
    9. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by asdfghjklqwertyuiop · · Score: 4, Insightful

      It is known as artistic license.


      In what, second grade?

    10. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by monopole · · Score: 1

      It's to express the awesome grandeur of space!

    11. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by ari_j · · Score: 2

      Curiously enough, it's actually the use of words like puerile that will keep articles off the front page.*

      I agree that this was just gratuitous. My favorite part is that the submitter put "barfing" into quotation marks, as if it wasn't his word. My second favorite part is that the use of the word combined with the phrase "into space" implies that it is spewing matter beyond its sphere of influence. Watching the animated gif from TFA makes it seem (at least to me, IANAE (I am not an exogeologist)) that the matter settles to the moon's surface.

      * - Unless, of course, you spell it wrong or use it to mean something it doesn't.

    12. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      puking isnt just funny, its damn sexy too. ;)

    13. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I completely agree.

    14. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Paradise+Pete · · Score: 1
      I saw this story in Firehose and thought; interesting story, too bad the puerile wording will keep it off the front page...

      Yeah, me too. It'd be nice to be able to include a one-line comment explaining why you're voting no. Often there are reasonably interesting stories with poorly-written submissions. I vote no figuring someone else will submit the same story with a better write-up, but it would be better if I could somehow note that. (Such as on Wikipedia, where you can explain an edit.)

    15. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by mythar · · Score: 1

      i was half-expecting the link to take me to a calvin & hobbes cartoon.

    16. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      We aint got nothin wrong with our goddamned edumacation!

    17. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by trawg · · Score: 1

      Welcome to the new world of RSS browsed-headlines

    18. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Dunbal · · Score: 2, Funny

      Otherwise, we wouldn't have overlord jokes.

            Well since you insist, I for one welcome our cosmic regurgitating overlords.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    19. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by ozmanjusri · · Score: 1
      So, why does the summary title and text use the terms "puking" and "barfing" when the article itself doesn't make any such references?

      Hey, at least it's better than "Io does a Tubgirl"

      --
      "I've got more toys than Teruhisa Kitahara."
    20. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by gkhan1 · · Score: 1

      "Exogeologist"? That doesn't sound right to me... If I remember my languages correct, "exo" means outside, "logist" comes from logos, meaning word or knowledge, but correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't the "geo" part mean earth? As in the geocentric model of the universe, for instance? That just doesn't make any sense. Shouldn't it be... I don't know... "exolithiology"? Maybe something involving tectonic, "astrotectonology"? "Astrolithiology"? I think "exolithiology" is the best one. At any rate, "exogeology" is just wrong, we should pick another one before this discipline gets much older.

    21. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by asninn · · Score: 2, Informative

      In any grade where people still have a sense of humour left.

      --
      butter the donkey
    22. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by ari_j · · Score: 1

      I actually spent some time looking into what word to use. I would have gone with "iologist," but I couldn't find an apropos use of that term so I went with exobiologist, which is listed as an alias of astrogeology on Wikipedia. I don't like using geocentric terms when discussing other heavenly bodies, but wasn't left much real choice here.

    23. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by asdfghjklqwertyuiop · · Score: 1

      People still have senses of humor in all of them. But we don't have the same sense of humor in the 27th grade that we did in the 2nd. Well, most of us anyway.

    24. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You have no idea what "clinical" is. As a physician, I can think of blood, mucus, pus, bile, amniotic fluid and many other body fluids that you would not want at the dinner table.

    25. Re:"Puking" and "barfing"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      People still have senses of humor in all of them. But we don't have the same sense of humor in the 27th grade that we did in the 2nd. Well, most of us anyway.
      Grad student, eh?
  4. What fun by DigiShaman · · Score: 1

    Dude!!! If only I had a boogie board, then I could ride the ash fountain to the top! What? George Lucas wants to use the idea for his next Starwars movie? Bummer :(

    --
    Life is not for the lazy.
  5. Great terminology... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 4, Funny

    When did "puking" and "barfing" become scientific terms? Wouldn't "ejaculate" be a more appropriate term?

    1. Re:Great terminology... by eneville · · Score: 1

      When did "puking" and "barfing" become scientific terms? Wouldn't "ejaculate" be a more appropriate term? Ok, you asked, I think exhaust would be more appropriate.
      --
      Why UNIX?
    2. Re:Great terminology... by Jugalator · · Score: 2, Funny

      I sure hope not... Saturn was a roman God, father of Jupiter, so that could be a nasty case of incest if it was destined for his neighbor. :-(

      --
      Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
    3. Re:Great terminology... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      what about "tubgirling" ?

    4. Re:Great terminology... by mikael · · Score: 3, Informative



      Venting is the traditional term

      --
      Vintage computer adverts: http://www.vintageadbrowser.com/computers-and-software-ads
    5. Re:Great terminology... by ResidntGeek · · Score: 1

      Yeah, it'd be like Zeus screwing his sister or something!

      --
      ResidntGeek
    6. Re:Great terminology... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It you want to get technical, it's more like popping a pimple.

    7. Re:Great terminology... by Tablizer · · Score: 3, Funny

      When did "puking" and "barfing" become scientific terms? Wouldn't "ejaculate" be a more appropriate term?

      Only if the moon moans in pleasure.

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
    8. Re:Great terminology... by suv4x4 · · Score: 1

      When did "puking" and "barfing" become scientific terms?

      Since when is Slashdot about science :P ?

    9. Re:Great terminology... by chmod+a+x+mojo · · Score: 1

      I beleive the correct term for matter that get forcefully EJECTED from a volcano is called...... ejecta, not ejaculate.

      --
      To err is human; effective mayhem requires the root password!
    10. Re:Great terminology... by asninn · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Hey, if you look at everything that the graecoroman gods did, incest is actually one of the most harmless things you'll come across...

      --
      butter the donkey
    11. Re:Great terminology... by asninn · · Score: 1

      Interestingly enough, "venting" is also the word falconers use when a bird defecates...

      --
      butter the donkey
  6. Huh? by Frosty+Piss · · Score: 4, Insightful

    So which is it? Puking or barfing? The summary leaves me confused.

    --
    If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
  7. don't mind him by game+kid · · Score: 1

    He's just trying to break wind--I mean step with the usual Slashdot submitters.

    --
    You can hold down the "B" button for continuous firing.
  8. Puking into space? by VitrosChemistryAnaly · · Score: 2, Funny

    I wonder if that's because it got a good look at Uranus?

    --
    "It's a tarp!" -- Dyslexic Admiral Ackbar
  9. Iota Omicron (IO) by Orleron · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...the slutty drunken sorority moon of Jupiter.

    1. Re:Iota Omicron (IO) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's not a mooon... That's a sorority girl.

  10. How to punt as a columnist by Dasher42 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Step 1: Find a science story about a well-observed and described phenomenon.
    Step 2: Add a purile, irrelevant adjective, one that will set you apart from the pack.
    Step 3: Write it up. Hello, interwebz. Let's move some ads!
    Step 4: News aggregate sites filter out the best from all the... oh wait, here comes Zonk. Go, go Slashdot!
    Step 5: Profit! :) :) :)

    1. Re:How to punt as a columnist by dkf · · Score: 2, Informative

      Step 3: Write it up. Hello, interwebz. Let's move some ads!
      Except the only link in the whole story (including the "Tablizer writes:" preamble) is to an ad-free site and there's no link concealing or other sorts of nefarious stuff either. Nice theory of yours, but the facts don't support it. Looks instead exactly like a good story spoilt by a potty-mouthed submitter. Like that's never happened before...
      --
      "Little does he know, but there is no 'I' in 'Idiot'!"
    2. Re:How to punt as a columnist by Dasher42 · · Score: 1

      Upon second thought, "puking" didn't sound like something to appear on an .edu page. S'pose you're right.

    3. Re:How to punt as a columnist by CmdrGravy · · Score: 1

      "Puking" and "barfing" may be unsuitable words to describe technical details in a scientific story but, believe me, they are far better choices than that phrase "potty mouthed" will ever be, for anything.

      "Potty mouthed" sounds like something a 3 year old might say.

  11. In the end we will eventually discover by pair-a-noyd · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    that the universe is a living thing and that we are just microbes.

    1. Re:In the end we will eventually discover by pair-a-noyd · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      And that was offtopic in what way? I think not only was it totally on topic, it was deeply insightful.
      Think about it..

    2. Re:In the end we will eventually discover by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And you say that while I'm reading Greg Bears Blood Music..

      FYI: in that book, almost exactly the same happens...

  12. Puking? by jollyreaper · · Score: 1, Funny

    Too much space mead?

    --
    Kwisatz Haderach
    Sell the spice to CHOAM
    This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
    1. Re:Puking? by jollyreaper · · Score: 1

      Too much space mead? Offtopic? When the submitter uses "barf" and "puke" to describe astrophysical phenomena, offtopic no longer has any meaning.

      To bring this post back "on topic," allow me to submit the latest findings about the Big Black Hole at the center of our galaxy, or as the original submitter might refer to it, the "Goatse Nebula."

      Incidentally, "space mead" was a great Cthulhu reference. Mod parent up or something unspeakable will eat you.

      ..0.o..
      ////|\\\\

      Shit, my Cthulhu looks like the guy on the Pringles can. Mod me back down.
      --
      Kwisatz Haderach
      Sell the spice to CHOAM
      This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
  13. My God... by segedunum · · Score: 4, Funny

    It's full of puke.

  14. Amazing pics by Teun · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I'm amazed by this short sequence.
    Considering the distance it's a real neat proof of excellent space ship engineering.

    Looking at the hight to which the venting reaches this is one hell of a volcano!

    --
    "The likes of Facebook and WhatsApp are free to those whose privacy is of zero value."
    1. Re:Amazing pics by MichaelSmith · · Score: 1

      this is one hell of a volcano!

      I have read elsewhere that the Volcanoes on Io are probably no bigger than a hot spring geyser on Earth. The plume goes up a long way because of the very thin atmosphere and low gravity.

      Even so, given the energy cost of getting there and the amount of radiation in the environment around it this moon is going to be unfinished business for the next 500 years or so.

      --
      http://michaelsmith.id.au
    2. Re:Amazing pics by phulegart · · Score: 4, Informative

      Not sure where you read what you read, but it is obvious that you did not RTFA, since from the article we learn...

      "Boosaule Mons, which at 18 kilometers (11 miles) is the highest mountain on Io and one of the highest mountains in the solar system, pokes above the edge of the disk on the right side." ... and although this is not the height of the volcano that is erupting, it points to structures on Io that are larger than anything here on earth.

      You might have read this...

      "Unlike most moons, Io has a "young" surface. Because there is so much volcanic activity, the surface is almost free of craters. Also, its volcanoes are quite unusual. Instead of erupting like a normal volcano, they erupt more like geysers do on earth." ...from http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Wikijunior_Solar_Syst em/Jupiter/Io ...or you might have read this though...

      "Io has lots of thermal areas just like Yellowstone," says JPL's Bill Smythe. "The volcanic plumes get most of the attention but there are probably also things like fumeroles and geysers. On a previous flyby the Particles and Fields instruments saw a deficit of energetic particles over Io where gas was probably coming out of the surface -- but no plumes were seen. We call this the 'stealth plume hypothesis.' The closest Earthly analog to what's happening would be a water geyser like Old Faithful. In fact, if you put Old Faithful on Io it would be about 37 km high!" ...which came from http://science.nasa.gov/NEWHOME/headlines/ast04oct 99_1.htm and only indicates that due to conditions on Io, a familiar geyser on earth would eject matter quite high. However, with this data from the article...

      "the cloud of volcanic debris, which extends 330 kilometers (200 miles) above the moon's surface. Only the upper part of the plume is visible from this vantage point - the plume's source is 130 kilometers (80 miles) below the edge of Io's disk, on the far side of the moon." ... we can safely infer that the volcanoes erupting on Io are not similar to earth geysers in size, rather only in how they erupt.

      Volcanoes on Io are rather different in general from their Earth cousins. From Wikipedia...

      "Io's surface is dotted with volcanic depressions known as paterae. Paterae generally have flat floors bounded by steep walls. These features resemble terrestrial calderas, but it is unknown if they are produced through collapse over an emptied lava chamber as with their terrestrial cousins. One hypothesis suggests that these features are produced through the exhumation of volcanic sills, with the overlying material either being blasted out or integrated into the sill. Unlike similar features on Earth and Mars, these depressions generally do not lie at the peak of shield volcanoes and are normally larger, with an average diameter of 41 km (25½ mi), the largest being Loki Patera at 202 km (125½ mi)." ... in other words flat holes in the ground slightly similar to sinkholes. So personally, I wouldn't look forward to an eruption from the still active Loki, at a diameter of 125 miles. I mean, I wouldn't look forward to sitting ringside to that.

      --
      "I love deadlines. I love the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." -D. Adams
    3. Re:Amazing pics by volcanopele · · Score: 2, Informative

      I think the Wikijunior article on Io's volcanism is being a bit simplistic. Basically, Io's volcanoes erupt like Kilauea in Hawaii, except the lava is a little less viscous (similar in viscosity to olive oil) so they don't build up large shield volcanoes like on Earth or Mars. The output also tends to be much greater. The plumes we are see on Io are not themselves the volcano, but are byproducts of Io's volcanism. Their size is a combination of the lack of a substantial atmosphere on Io and that moon's low gravity. Volatiles, like sulfur and sulfur dioxide exsolve from Io's lava as it erupts, carrying small, dust-sized particles from the lava along with it. This gas and dust is what you see in this movie (actually, you are only looking at the dust, the gas is invisible in images like this). In this case, the gas and dust is exsolving from a 1-km tall fire fountain. Smaller plumes, like the one at Prometheus, form slightly differently. At these volcanoes, lava flows over terrain covered in sulfur and sulfur dioxide. The underlying sulfur dioxide heats up, and once reaching a critical pressure, bursts through the overlying lava. So these are not like geysers. These volcanoes erupt much like volcanoes on Earth, but the interplay between volatiles and lava, the near-vacumn environment, and the slightly less-viscous lava, help make spectacular displays like you see here at Tvashtar.

      --
      The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
    4. Re:Amazing pics by phulegart · · Score: 1

      As I quoted from NASA, these volcanoes do NOT erupt like volcanoes on Earth. From my post...

      "Io has lots of thermal areas just like Yellowstone," says JPL's Bill Smythe. "The volcanic plumes get most of the attention but there are probably also things like fumeroles and geysers. On a previous flyby the Particles and Fields instruments saw a deficit of energetic particles over Io where gas was probably coming out of the surface -- but no plumes were seen. We call this the 'stealth plume hypothesis.' The closest Earthly analog to what's happening would be a water geyser like Old Faithful. In fact, if you put Old Faithful on Io it would be about 37 km high!"

      Which was not from a wikipedia junior article, but from http://science.nasa.gov/NEWHOME/headlines/ast04oct 99_1.htm again, as I previously posted.

      Otherwise, your information is very scientific and appears well researched.

      --
      "I love deadlines. I love the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." -D. Adams
    5. Re:Amazing pics by volcanopele · · Score: 1

      If you read that quote, you would note that Smythe is making a distinction between volcanoes and volcanic plumes (like is shown in the image linked in the article) and the possible fureroles and geysers that might exist on Io. So these volcanoes DO erupt like volcanoes on Earth, just on a different scale, with less viscous lava, and with no entrained water and carbon dioxide.

      --
      The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
    6. Re:Amazing pics by master_p · · Score: 1

      If our future weapons is anything like the Death Star or the Wave Motion Gun, does that mean that we can shoot at the volcano and blow up the planet?

  15. puke stuff by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    But is that ejaculant really ash per se? What does Io consist of?

    1. Re:puke stuff by volcanopele · · Score: 3, Informative

      What you are seeing in this image is mostly sulfur and sulfur dioxide that has condensed out of the gas in the plume. There is also a mix of basaltic ash. The plume consists of gas and dust that escapes from an erupting lava curtain on the surface.

      --
      The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
  16. Well... by Toandeaf · · Score: 2, Funny

    I don't have anything thoughtful to add about this, so I think I'll just do the cool thing and mock the title of the article. heh. it said puke.

  17. Rovers and such by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Is there any way to privately donate money for the purpose of sending probes, rovers and such to other moons and planets?

    1. Re:Rovers and such by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Is there any way to privately donate money for the purpose of sending probes, rovers and such to other moons and planets?

      The Planetary Society privately funded a solar sail experiment. Unfortunately, the rocket exploded during launch. But they did select launchers on price instead of reliability (aging Soviet military equip.), so I guess its a case of you get what you pay for.

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
    2. Re:Rovers and such by pimpimpim · · Score: 1

      Aren't most of the current space missions done with space equipment based on soviet technology? And aren't a lot of those just going pretty nicely? (the modern european ariadne rockets seem to have less luck, also take a look at the far from unproblematic space shuttle launches). I wonder how much aging equipment there can be in rocket science, most of the stuff is not really made for re-use anyway. Everything that went up in space has to be built anew. The technological idea can be old, but 'old' is sometimes just a synonym for 'proven'.

      --
      molmod.com - computing tips from a molecular modeling
    3. Re:Rovers and such by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Aren't most of the current space missions done with space equipment based on soviet technology?

      Because they are built by large international corporations, I'm sure there is a mix in most launches.

      And aren't a lot of those just going pretty nicely?

      They tried to take a short-cut, not using "regular" russian rockets. I am not bashing russian technology. The lowest-end US technology is probably not every good either. It is just that due to labor rates, the cheap russian technology is cheaper than the cheap US technology. IOW "outsourced". The Planetary Society tried to take a shortcut to cut costs, and it cost them. That's the bottom line.

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
  18. puking the wonders of the universe for all to see by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Funny, I would have never equated "puking" and "beautiful plume" in the same breath. That must have been one amazing cosmic party!

  19. Direction of spout by Tablizer · · Score: 2, Interesting

    At first I thought the direction of motion of the debri was from right-to-left. However, watching the animation loop for a while, it now appears that it is coming from the middle-to-right center of the plum and spreading out, but below the visible horizon. It is coming up, over the edge as it spreads out.

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
  20. puking, barfing... by AnonymousCactus · · Score: 1

    I prefer Ralphing.
    For a science that's so concerned about nomenclature (i.e. Pluto) how does puking or barfing even get used by a writer?

  21. Viking snapped this too (1979) by toby · · Score: 1

    Io, one of the moons of Jupiter, showing a volcanic eruption on the rim, 1979.

    --
    you had me at #!
    1. Re:Viking snapped this too (1979) by Chibi+Merrow · · Score: 1

      Voyager, Voyager... Not Viking. Viking went to Mars. But yes, good point. I think the eruptions on Io were one of those things got really surprised and excited about when reviewing the mission data a few years later. First time a volcano was caught in the act outside of Earth. This image is, of course, about 1000x better quality than the old Voyager data. :) And done over a time lapse as well, where Voyager just snapped some quick shots as it screamed past.

      --
      Maxim: People cannot follow directions.
      Increases in truth directly with the length of time spent explaining them
  22. mass by patrikor_007 · · Score: 1

    I wonder how much mass Io lost when that thing blew up.

    1. Re:mass by Paradise+Pete · · Score: 1
      I wonder how much mass Io lost when that thing blew up.

      Do you think it's being ejected at escape velocity? It looks to me like it's falling back down.

    2. Re:mass by niktemadur · · Score: 1

      It looks to me like it's falling back down.

      Most of it, but not all. The resolution is not high enough to show matter escaping into space.
      Keep in mind that Jupiter's ring is made of, and is replenished by, Io's volcanic ejecta.

      Someone further up the thread said this event was created by something more similar to a geyser than a volcano. Imagine standing on the surface of Io, as you would on Yellowstone, watching this baby from, let's say, half a kilometer. A stream shooting into space and arching in filaments in all directions beyond the horizon, with Jupiter looming in the skies. JPL needs to put an artist's rendition on the website.

      --
      Lil' Thindime, lilting a lacrimose lament, krashes the kwaint konfines of Kokonino Kounty
    3. Re:mass by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      500 metres away ? Since the thing is about 330 kilometres high, I doubt the edge is clearly defined enough to be able to stand half a kilometre away from it. Watching it from 100 kilometres away would probably be beautiful, though.

    4. Re:mass by volcanopele · · Score: 2, Informative

      Nearly all of the material that is ejected in this plume returns to the surface and forms a giant red ring surrounding Tvashtar. Here is an image that shows the effects of a similar eruption in 2000 and 2001: http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA02588 As far as what it would look like, we don't have a higher resolution image of the plume, but the plume source was well imaged by Galileo during several encounters in 1999, 2000, and 2001. The source is a curtain of lava, very similar to what you might see at Kilauea in Hawaii. Here is a graphic showing two views taken during those Galileo encounters: http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA02584 The image on the left shows the fire fountain eruption from 1999 (the actually fire fountain is a drawing of what it would have looked like if the eruption weren't so bright, it saturated the detector, see http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA02519 for the original image). During the New Horizons encounter, a similar fire fountain event occurred at the same site (as evidenced by the glow from the lava being visible, during daytime, at visible wavelengths, from a spacecraft 2.5 million km away!) and was the source of the plume linked in the article above. Jupiter's rings are formed through micrometeorite impacts on the surfaces of its inner satellites, particularly Metis and Adrastea. There is a torus of plasma (mostly sulfur and oxygen ions) sharing Io's orbit, but the material for that ring, if you can call it that, comes from Io's atmosphere, not from Io's volcanoes directly. Only 1% of the material ejected by Io's volcanoes reaches escape velocity, while most of the material is ejected at a maximum of 1 km/sec. (compared to Io's escape velocity of 2.6 km/sec.)

      --
      The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
    5. Re:mass by Paradise+Pete · · Score: 1
      Most of it, but not all. The resolution is not high enough to show matter escaping into space.

      I believe the escape velocity on Io is about 5,000 miles per hour. I don't know how powerful the volcano is, but that's awfully fast.

  23. Global warming by tomesnyder · · Score: 1

    Finally, we have found the true source of global warming!!!

    --
    tomesnyder
  24. Great image sequence, poor wording by volcanopele · · Score: 1

    This movie is one of the best observations of Io's plumes taken. You can clearly see dust clumping within the plume and how those structures evolve over the 8-minute sequence. Galileo could have taken many movies like this, had it not been for the low bandwidth thanks to the broken high-gain antenna. This same praise can't be said for the description used in this article. First, this image was released almost a month ago. While very cool, and I'm certainly happy for Io to be discussed here (Uranus jokes not withstanding), but this is not news. Second, puking and barfing? Couldn't we use better terminology than puking and barfing... Makes Io sound ill, not the cool place it really is.

    --
    The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
  25. What a mess... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's gonna take forever to clean all that crap off the side of Discovery.

  26. Fake? by Poseiden · · Score: 0, Troll

    Does this image look fake to anyone else? look how the light reflects off of the smoke plume. its like its lighted from the top when you see the sun hitting the satellite from the left.

    agreed?

    1. Re:Fake? by Farmer+Tim · · Score: 1

      It isn't smoke; there's no atmosphere to suspend the smaller particles, and no turbulence to disrupt the parabolic trajectory. That means the plume isn't randomly shaped and opaque like a billowing smoke plume on Earth, it's more like a fountain (as it says in the article, and as the GIF shows: smoke on Earth doesn't billow down, you're seeing particles purely under the influence of gravity).

      Now, because there's no suspended material (smoke), the amout of light the plume reflects is determined purely by the cross-sectional density; that is, the more particles there are in a given horizontal slice, the brighter that area appears. That region of greatest density is where the particles are moving slowest in the vertical plane, which happens to be the top of the parabolic arc (exactly like a fountain; you can test this with a garden hose, if you like, the water will appear to be most dense where gravity kicks in and the flow turns back on itself. Same principle).

      The lack of smoke has one other implication: without a dense, opaque cloud of randomly moving fine particles to block light as it moves through the plume, light is reflected almost evenly from all sides; hence no prominent shadow (flying rocks don't cast much of a shadow).

      So in theory, on an airless moon a volcanic plume seen side-on should have a moderately thick "base" where the material is ejected, an almost opaque looking umbrella-shaped cap where the particles are slowing and beggining to fall back, and a much thinner outer region, with almost negligable shading because there's no smoke. By a curious coincidence, that's what the photos show.

      If it looked like a volcano on Earth it would be a fake.

      --
      Blank until /. makes another boneheaded UI decision.
    2. Re:Fake? by volcanopele · · Score: 1

      Great description. One comment I have is that these plumes can cast a shadow, see this image of the Prometheus plume (a smaller plume about 75-100 km height): http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA00703 .

      --
      The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
    3. Re:Fake? by Farmer+Tim · · Score: 1

      You're too kind (and fast!). Of course it's true they do cast a shadow, but compared to smoke it's nowhere near as intense, and again it's a function of density so the light has to be at exactly the right angle; the inverse of what we see in these images, really. I probably oversimplified that point, so thanks for mentioning it.

      --
      Blank until /. makes another boneheaded UI decision.
  27. would an american submitter by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    put the distance in kilometers?

    1. Re:would an american submitter by livewire98801 · · Score: 1

      Yes, measurements in space are rarely on the SAE system. Especially after that incident in space because both measurements were used and mixed (don't remember which now), but even historically, measurements outside Earth's atmosphere have been Metric.

      --
      "He may be mad, but there's method in his madness. [...] It's what drives men mad, being methodical." G.K.Chesterton
  28. Subject by Legion303 · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    A small tip for Slashdot submitters: don't put quotes around words that don't actually appear in the article, dumb fuck.

    1. Re:Subject by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A small post for Slashdot tipsters: don't call the submitter "dumb fuck" unless you want to be modded "flamebait".

    2. Re:Subject by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      shut up, tablizer.

  29. From looking at the animation by Centurix · · Score: 1

    I'd say it was more pissing on itself. We may be witnessing the solar systems spring break.

    --
    Task Mangler
  30. Mea culpa by toby · · Score: 1

    Stupid mistake, thx ;)

    Somehow I had it in my head that it was Viking. I remember seeing the pictures in National Geographic at the time - I'm sure the Io volcano was a cover image.

    --
    you had me at #!
  31. Question: Why is the quality so poor? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Many of us carry tiny mobile phones that are capable of better quality video. Why is the image data and video data returned by these probes so poor?

    Well ok a phone cam only has to work a few meters in good lighting. Never the less, the size, power and bandwidth requirements for decent video is being reduced, in part by the consumer electronics industry. So what is the limiting factor these probes?

    1. Re:Question: Why is the quality so poor? by volcanopele · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Bandwidth and in this case, distance from the target. New Horizons required 3 months to return all the data it took during the mission, which included more than just images, but specta and in situ data as well. In addition, the images used to make this movie were taken from a distance of 3.8 million km! The image quality and resolution (~19 km/pixel) is actually much better than we would have gotten at a similar distance from Galileo, Cassini, or Voyager, the previous three missions to observe Io.

      --
      The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
    2. Re:Question: Why is the quality so poor? by IHC+Navistar · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Maybe it's because Jupiter is 365 MILLION miles from Earth.

      The limiting factor of the space probes that took the photos would be CURRENT TECHNOLOGY.

      --
      Knowing Google's lust for data collection, the Soviet Union is still alive and well inside the psyche of Sergey Brin....
    3. Re:Question: Why is the quality so poor? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wow 3 months to return all its data. So it is a bandwidth problem. Still it's a shame they can't get great high quality images and video. Especially Huygens which was pretty disappointing. At the very least it would be great PR for NASA, more so than the ISS.

    4. Re:Question: Why is the quality so poor? by mpe · · Score: 1

      Many of us carry tiny mobile phones that are capable of better quality video. Why is the image data and video data returned by these probes so poor?

      There are several reasons. The camera has to be capable of surviving in deep space, the bandwidth is limited, the light level isn't that good and the probe takes several years to get to Jupiter.

    5. Re:Question: Why is the quality so poor? by VWJedi · · Score: 1

      The limiting factor of the space probes that took the photos would be CURRENT TECHNOLOGY.

      Actually, it's 2005 technology... (The launch was January 2006, so it must have been built in 2005.)

  32. It could be worse... by SonicSpike · · Score: 1

    "Uranus spewing gas and fluid emissions"

    --
    Libertas in infinitum
    1. Re:It could be worse... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, it's Io spunk swapping with Callisto!

  33. New Astronomical Term..... by IHC+Navistar · · Score: 1

    "Pissing Into The Wind" -: A body the ejects material into space, only to have the same ejected material return to the same body that ejected it.

    I think that would accurately describe what is going on in the article.
    -

    I think that the description of this article is a lowpoint for SlashDot submissions.

    --
    Knowing Google's lust for data collection, the Soviet Union is still alive and well inside the psyche of Sergey Brin....
    1. Re:New Astronomical Term..... by SlowMovingTarget · · Score: 1

      "Pissing Into The Wind" ...

      In other news: NASA scientists detected a belligerent Titan stepping on Superman's cape, and generally messing around with Jim.

  34. This is Enlarged Text by StikyPad · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    I love "Enlarge Photo" buttons that open up the photo in the exact same dimensions and resolution as the one in the article. Anyone find a higher quality image?

    Also I was under the impression that water is blue on Earth because it reflects our blue atmosphere. Why would water on Mars be blue? Or is that a false-color image?

    --
    https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere
    1. Re:This is Enlarged Text by volcanopele · · Score: 1

      No the movie is already magnified by 2x from the original data. Here is an example of one of the images that went into this movie: http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/soc/data/jupiter/level2/lo r/jpeg/003509/lor_0035099189_0x630_sci_1.jpg

      --
      The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
    2. Re:This is Enlarged Text by StikyPad · · Score: 1

      I believe I inadvertantly posted to the wrong discussion.

      --
      https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere
    3. Re:This is Enlarged Text by barry99705 · · Score: 1

      Why yes, you did. :)

    4. Re:This is Enlarged Text by SlowMovingTarget · · Score: 1

      Yeah, don't you just hate it when something promises enlargement and results in something that's exactly the same size. I hate when that happens. I suppose we'll simply have to accept the fact that it's as big as it's going to get.

      Wait... What?

  35. Not toilet humor. by Cafe+Alpha · · Score: 2, Funny

    You're so right. Why didn't it say "ejaculating into space?"

    1. Re:Not toilet humor. by CmdrGravy · · Score: 2, Funny
      Indeed. I'd have liked to the seen the phrase "pumping hot moon spunk" somewhere in there too.

      The New Horizons probe caught the moon Io red faced 'pumping hot moon spunk' into the space void. A five-frame film sequence from the New Horizons planetry probe captured a gushing plume of jizz from Io's Tvashtar jizz hole. "Snapped by the snooping probe's Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) as the spacecraft flew past Jupiter earlier this earth year, this first-ever, so called, "movie" of an Io plume clearly shows a thrusting motion hidden within the cloud of moon spunk, which extends 3,3000 meters (12 672 000 inches ) above the moon's surface ... The appearance and motion of the splume is remarkably similar to an small ornamental marble fountain in Wigan, replicated on a gigantic scale.""


  36. Tvashtar? by DragonTHC · · Score: 1

    Tvashtar? is that its Vulcan name?

    What do we call it in English?

    --
    They're using their grammar skills there.
    1. Re:Tvashtar? by volcanopele · · Score: 1

      hehe, funny. The volcanoes name is Tvashtar Paterae, that is what we call it in English. Tvashtar comes from the Vedic solar deity, Tvastar (see the wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tvashtar).

      --
      The Gish Bar Times - Blog covering Jupiter's moon Io
    2. Re:Tvashtar? by Hal_Porter · · Score: 1

      Tvashtar is the local name for it in the Iovian language ...

      Hold on, there's a Party Van at the door full of dudes in black suits. BRB, MIBs.

      --
      echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
  37. Not only that - but the pictures show... by NotQuiteReal · · Score: 1
    Io is it not "spewing" into space, but rather, back onto itself! (no toilet involved.)

    Whoever named that feature the Trashtalk Volcano knew too much...

    --
    This issue is a bit more complicated than you think.
  38. Mods: s/Flamebait/Insightful/ by Omni-Cognate · · Score: 1

    Particularly since the wording of the post seems to the main topic of conversation anyway. I have no particular objection to the wording of the post, but the quotes imply that the words came from the article, which they didn't. The first thing I did when I saw this post was to follow the link and search for "puke", thinking "NASA didn't say that, did they?!?!??".

    --

    "The Milliard Gargantubrain? A mere abacus - mention it not."

  39. Hello, switcheur! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Real Mac users don't use Macs for the image. Real Mac users didn't just buy their Macs last week at Hot Topic. We've been here on the Mac platform since 1984 and believe me, we resent the recent influx of switcheurs almost as much as we don't give a damn about PC users.

    1. Re:Hello, switcheur! by rbanffy · · Score: 1

      I see.

      That's why you are posting here.

      --
      http://www.dieblinkenlights.com
  40. Really "Into Space", colorful wording aside by Muad'Dave · · Score: 1

    How much of that ejecta will end up in space, and how much will fall back onto Io? From what I could see, it looked like most of it was arcing back down onto the surface, although that might be the result of a trick of perspective.

    --
    Tiller's Rule: Never use a word in written form that you've only heard and never read. You will end up looking foolish.
  41. Barfing? Puking? Like ,dude- Omigod! Poneys? by Einstein's+Bees · · Score: 1

    In other news-

        It was reported that Mount St Helens like, barfed all over Washington State about 25 years ago!

        Like about fifty people (more or less) were killed by the puke!

          Ewww.. gross! Why do you nerdy /.ers alwayz remind us of this ickey stuff?

    --
    - Ze Laws ov Termodynamics? BAH!
    Kelvin vas a fool!
    Mit Hydrogen + Pinoqachole ve can break zes laws anytime!
  42. Hmmm.... by technococcus · · Score: 1

    The appearance and motion of the plume is remarkably similar to an ornamental fountain on Earth, replicated on a gigantic scale.


    Or perhaps more interestingly arranged: "The appearance and motion of an ornamental fountain on Earth is remarkably similar to the ash plume of an enormous volcano in a low-atmosphere environment, replicated on a terrestrial scale."
  43. global warming?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    is this another thing we can blame on global warming
    *ducks*